Dangerous Admirer
by FireTigerSoul
Summary: Kagome seems to have picked up an admirer, one of the dangerous sorts. After battling various youkai in Sengoku Jidai, taking care of a stalker should be a cinch, right? Complete
1. Chapter one

Disclaimer: Inuyasha and the gang, sadly, do not belong to me. They belong to the great and powerful Oz...I mean....Takahashi.

A/N: Alright! It's finally up! I didn't want to put it up without at least 2 chapters to accompany the first one. Please review and tell me what you think!

* * *

Kagome took a cautious step forward and froze as a twig snapped underneath her shoe. Her heart immediately leapt into her throat as she began looking around the dark clearing frantically for any sign of life.

No way.

There was absolutely _no way _she was going to lose tonight.

She clenched her fist as she thought of the many times she had been pulled ruthlessly away from her goal-but not now. She had taken every precaution to ensure success.

Confident now, Kagome took another step forward, then another, building up to an even pace.

'That's it Kagome,' she coached herself in hopes of calming down her racing heart. 'Nice and slow. Go easy. Nice and calm.'

Twenty feet left.

'Almost there, just keep it up, nice and-,'

A twig snapped close behind her and she waited a fraction of an instant before breaking out into a frantic run towards her goal.

"And what do you think _you're _doing?" A familiar voice rang out behind her.

Kagome came to a full stop less than three feet away from the well and cursed under her breath. "Sleep-walking?" She replied, hopeful.

"I don't think so Kagome," Inuyasha bit out before closing the remaining space between them. In one fluid movement her hefted Kagome's pack over one shoulder and Kagome herself over the other. "You were trying to run back home again," he spat angrily. "And on the night of the New Moon, even! Did you really think that would work?"

'It was supposed to,' Kagome thought sadly to herself. Kaede, ever sympathetic to Kagome's plight had taken it upon herself to assist her in getting home this time. She understood how important it was for Kagome to get home and study for her tests. So, she immediately had set about making a sleeping draught to put into Inuyasha's meal that evening.

At first Kagome was immediately against the idea. If she had any real problems, she could always just 'sit' him into oblivion and slip down the well while he was still trying to drag himself out of his own little Inuyasha-shaped crater. After she came back, he would be sulky for days and then everything would be back to normal.

But a quick reminder from Kaede about the New Moon changed everything. Kagome knew from experience that Inuyasha worked himself up into a nervous wreck on the night of the New Moon, the one night he was rendered helpless as a human. Maybe if she did allow Kaede to give him the potion, it would allow Inuyasha some much-needed rest.

Obviously the plan had backfired.

He was sleeping soundly when Kagome had crept past his post at the door inside Kaede's hut. Maybe she had made so much noise trying to squeeze her pack through the doorway that it woke him up.

In any case, it was another failed attempt.

She watched helplessly as the distance between herself and the well expanded. She stretched a hand out towards it and moaned. "My math test...my future..." she cried pathetically, trying to guilt him.

"The Jewel Shards!" Inuyasha yelled back, not buying into it. "Have you also forgotten a little youkai pest knows as Naraku?"

"And have _you _also completely forgotten that I have a life and a future to work for back home?" She replied, raising her voice to an angry shout.

"Keh," Inuyasha shrugged, nearly sending Kagome flying off his shoulder.

Giving an impressive growl for a human, Kagome reached down and yanked on a lock of black hair to vent her frustrations.

"Fuck Kagome! That hurts, bitch!"

"Good!" She shot back.

Inuyasha growled and pinched the back of her thigh in retaliation.

"OW! What was that for?" Kagome yelled, squirming around so she could rub the injured skin.

"For pulling my hair, moron!"

"You're such a jerk!" She snapped.

"And you're a bitch!"

"Oh, _that's _original!" Kagome retorted.

Ignoring her now, Inuyasha stormed into Kaede's hut, angrily brushing aside the door mat. He stomped over to Kagome's previous spot by the fire and dumped both her and the pack on the floor.

"Get some sleep," He ordered, taking up a post closer to Kagome rather than his usual one at the door. There was no way she was going to try and leave again tonight.

He could hear her grumbling under her breath about a bruised tailbone.

Well, tough. She wouldn't have one if she had stayed put and slept all night. He sighed, rolling his tense shoulders against the hard wall behind him and settling into a more bearable position.

Speaking of sleeping, he frowned, when the hell did _he_ fall asleep? It was the night of the New Moon, his most vulnerable time against attacks from humans and youkai alike, and his body just up and decides to take a cheery little nap?

Picking up on a rustling noise, he looked up to watch Kagome set up her sleeping bag with a practiced ease. He waited until she was curled up inside and settled before closing his eyes and sighing.

Did she know what kind of danger she continually puts herself in? Walking around in the forest in the head of night- what the hell was she thinking? Any kind of dangerous youkai could have easily snatched her up or killed her on the spot and he would be powerless to stop it.

When he woke and saw her empty spot, he felt his heart stop altogether. A million and one scenarios ran through his mind, each one of their endings worse than the one before. Pushing back the image of Kagome's lifeless body, lying bloody on the forest floor, he had pushed himself up and ran out of the hut faster than he could ever remember.

Without his senses, he couldn't catch onto her scent, and he once again cursed his weak human body. Without the moon and his demon blood it was even harder to see in the dark, but luckily he only had to walk a few feet before catching a glint of a large yellow bag seemingly floating in the air ten feet in front of him.

Relief like he'd never known coursed it's way through him...quickly followed by a furious rage. Naraku was still at large and she likes to take small walks in the middle of the night, completely alone?

"Inuyasha?" Kagome's soft voice pulled him from his musings.

He glared at her. "What?"

She peeked over her cover at him, her eyes contrite. "I'm sorry."

"Keh, no you're not." Inuyasha gave a short, humorless laugh. "I know you. You're going to apologize and act all sweet an innocent, and then when I finally calm down, you're going to somehow get me to allow you to go back home tomorrow."

"No I'm not!" Kagome protested.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow.

Kagome swallowed. "Well, I am sorry, in any case."

"Go to sleep," he told her again.

A long stretch of silence permeated the small hut, and Inuyasha allowed himself to close his eyes once again.

"Inuyasha?"

Swearing under his breath, he cracked one eye open to see Kagome's watery eyes peering over her sleeping bag at him. "What?"

"I really do need to go home," she reminded him.

He stared at her for another moment before sighing heavily. "Two days."

Kagome smiled, and then set her face into 'bargaining' mode. "Five."

Inuyasha snorted. "Three."

"Four."

"Three and that's all you're getting bitch, so take it or leave it."

"Three and a half," she pleaded.

"If you're not back by midday..." he threatened.

"I will! I promise!"

Inuyasha grunted, which Kagome knew to translate to 'alright'. She gave him a brilliant smile and thanked him before snuggling back into her sleeping bag and slipping into an easy sleep.


	2. Chapter two

Disclaimer: Until the genie living in my grandmother's perfume bottle decides to grant me three wishes, Inuyasha and the others STILL belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

A/N: Just a little randomness....my leg went numb four times while writing this chapter. I'm sure you were all dying to know that.

* * *

"Kagome-chan!"

Kagome groaned and slowed her pace to allow her three friends to catch up to her.

"How are you? You feeling better?" Eri asked hesitantly, once they had caught their breath.

"Yeah, your grandfather told us that you had contracted some kind of incurable disease this time," Yuka said, taking another step back.

"That's absurd. If it was incurable, would I be here right now?" Kagome forced herself to laugh. Her grandfather was going to _die_ for this one.

"Yeah, we kind of wondered ourselves..." Ayumi sighed. "Your grandfather can be a bit odd sometimes."

"Yes," Kagome sighed.

"So what did you have?" Eri asked, ever curious.

"Err..." Kagome faltered.

"And what about that violent jerk who's been two-timing you?" Yuka intervened.

'Talk about being between a rock and a hard place,' Kagome thought to herself. "Oh him," she plastered a smile on her face. "He's been...okay lately."

The bell rang just as her three friends open their mouths to ask questions. "Oops, look at that, gotta run!" Kagome smiled and ran as fast as she could to her first class.

"Kagome-chan!"

'Oh man,' Kagome thought to herself miserably. 'I really have to stop telling them things.'

"Kagome-chan! Look out!"

Eri's warning went unheeded as Kagome's small frame collided into another body. The force of the impact knocked her backwards, causing her to fall straight onto her ass.

She gasped and tried to rub her tailbone discretely as she moaned in pain. Looking before her, she saw the pant legs of the boys' uniform.

'Please don't be Hojo, please don't be Hojo,' Kagome chanted over and over inside her head. Hojo was the last thing she needed this early in the morning. But as her gaze traveled upward, she found her collision partner to be not Hojo, but a new boy she had never seen around school before.

He was well-kept, in any case. His light hair was cropped short, and his uniform was meticulous...not one wrinkle marred the perfect image. Which surprised Kagome, considering she had crashed into him with such force.

But as she examined him further, a cold sense of unease slipped over her. He was staring at her with intense pale eyes that seemed to look right through her, making her feel extremely exposed. He was staring at her as if he knew her...as if he knew _something_.

"Higurashi-san, are you alright?" Hojo's concerned voice broke Kagome out of her stupor. She forced herself to tear her eyes away from his, but not before a cold shiver ran down her spine.

Hojo was immediately at her side, offering his hand to help pull her up. Her trio of friends suddenly appeared behind him, their gazes already assessing the newcomer with critical eyes.

Ignoring Hojo's proffered hand, Kagome lifted herself off of the ground and brushed off her uniform, wincing as her tailbone protested.

"Are you new here?" Yuka asked the silent boy.

All eyes turned at once, waiting for an introduction.

After a pause, he seemed to reluctantly tell them his name in a soft voice. "Taka."

Yuka, the ever-friendly, seemed all to eager to introduce everyone. "Hi! My name is Yuka. These are my friends Eri, Ayumi, Hojo, and Kagome," she finished, pointing to each individual.

Kagome winced as his gaze once again turned to her. She wanted to throttle Yuka for giving him her name without asking for permission. The thought of his knowing her name made her feel...odd in a way. Like it was wrong.

Kagome visibly shook herself. What was wrong with her? She wasn't normally this suspicious of people she just met. She shook it all off, blaming it on Inuyasha's paranoia rubbing off on her.

There was nothing that suggested anything about Taka. She just met him for crying out loud.

Plastering a fake smile on her face she nodded to the new boy. "Hello."

His eyes seemed to see right through the smile to sense the uneasiness inside and gave a small smile in return.

"Well, ah..." Kagome turned to her friends. "We'd better get going. The bell rang a while ago."

"You're right," Yuka nodded. She turned to Taka. "Do you know your way around, yet? Do you need any help?"

He shook his head. "No, I still need to meet with the advisor about my class placement. But thank you."

"I hope we see you around!" Ayumi smiled to him before they turned around and headed to class.

Kagome took a deep breath of relief once they started down the hallway leading to their classroom. There was something about Taka that seemed to bother her. But what? She had only just met him, and had barely spoke three words to him. What exactly could set her on edge like that?

"Oh my god, I hope I see him again," Yuka sighed. "He was cute."

Kagome tripped and fell.

"Kagome!" Eri cried. "Are you okay?"

"Ahh, yeah," Kagome righted herself, plastering on a fake smile and scratching the back of her head. Cute? Was Yuka kidding? He was creepy!

"I don't know Yuka...he seemed awfully interested in Kagome," Ayumi mentioned slyly. "He hardly took his eyes off of her the whole time."

"I noticed that," Eri added. "He was watching her even before she bumped into him."

"What?" Kagome shouted. "Then why the hell didn't he move!?"

"Yeah, that was kind of weird..." Eri trailed off.

Kagome sighed and walked into the classroom, taking her seat just as the teacher walked in. Settling herself down, she reviewed over the notes she prepared in Sengoku Jidai, trying to remember as much as she could before the exam.

The dreaded piece of paper was handed out, and Kagome blocked out her surroundings, her entire world consisted of an 8 by 11 paper. Whizzing through the first three questions, and slowly gaining confidence, she grinned to herself and started to relax. Halfway through question five, the classroom door slid open, and the teacher stood up from his desk.

"Class, I hate to interrupt your exam, but I would like to introduce a new student."

Kagome felt her stomach drop.

"His name is Ueda Taka."

Kagome felt her head slam into the desk and groaned. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

"AAAIIIIIIIIIIIII!!! Sango! Help me!"

Sango grunted as Shippo crashed into her, squeaking with fear.

"What in-," Sango took one look at a raging hanyou breaking through the forest and running in her direction and immediately assessed the situation.

"Shippo, what happened?" She sighed, suddenly tired.

"Get back here you little runt!" Inuyasha yelled.

"Ahh!" Shippo let go of Sango's shoulder and took off running the other direction, Inuyasha hot on his heels.

"Kaede?" Sango turned to the old woman who was tending to her garden.

"Yes?"

"Do you think you could possibly make me a rosary so that I may subdue Inuyasha?" A familiar caress on her bottom jerked her whole body upright and sent her hand automatically flying into the monk's face. "And possibly one for Miroku as well?" She gritted through her teeth.

Kaede chuckled to herself.

"My dear Sango, how are you this lovely morning?" Miroku smiled, despite the angry-looking red mark forming on his cheek.

"Better until you came along," Sango grumbled, crossing her arms.

"And how is Inuyasha? Moping about as usual?" Miroku cast a glance towards the forest.

"No, he's chasing Shippo around the village," Sango replied.

"Ah, morning exercises," Miroku grinned. "One of the many ways to keep a hanyou fit and healthy."

A fist came out from behind Miroku and knocked him to the ground.

"What was that?" Inuyasha growled low, his fist clenching again.

"Good morning Inuyasha," Miroku rubbed his head, grumbling to himself as he stood up.

"Oww..." Shippo groaned as he climbed up Sango's shoulder, three new bumps forming on his head.

"Keh. Be thankful that's all I hit you this morning," Inuyasha sniffed, crossing his arms.

"You big meanie!" Shippo shook his fist. "I swear the minute Kagome gets back, I'm gonna make sure she sits you so far down they'll have to throw a rope to get you out!"

"Keh!" Inuyasha turned around, ignoring the threat.

"Off to sulk?" Miroku grinned.

"What was that?" Inuyasha growled.

"Nothing, nothing," Miroku held his hands up in defeat.

"Inuyasha, if you've nothing better to do than sit around all day, would you mind helping me?" Kaede asked.

Inuyasha's entire body clenched up, his head immediately snapping in the direction of the well. After another sniff of the air, he took off, leaping away from them in a single bound.

"A simple 'no' would suffice," Kaede sighed.

Sango frowned. "What do you think he sensed?"

"More like smelled," Miroku pointed out. "It couldn't have been Kagome, she's not supposed to be back for another 2 days."

"That's odd," Sango trailed off.

Miroku shrugged and turned to go back to the hut, coming face to face with an elderly miko with a pleading expression on her face.

"Ah, Kaede," Miroku sweat-dropped. "Well, I was just going to...check on Inuyasha..."

Kaede pointed to an empty bucket and Miroku sighed, picking it up and going in the direction of the stream.

Inuyasha landed at the well, positive that it was Kagome's scent he smelled back at the village. A minute later a large yellow backpack came sailing over the edge, quickly followed by Kagome herself.

Inuyasha let out a small sigh, his tense body relaxing a bit. She was back where she belonged. Maybe she had come to her senses and realized that her 'school' thing wasn't as important as the shard search.

No, he thought to himself, his eyes narrowing. That wasn't right. Kagome _always_ put her 'school' before the shards. Even while looking for the shards she was always scribbling nonsense in something called a 'notebook' for her 'school'. She even put the school before him.

Not that he cared or anything.

She was just the fucking tama detector.

_Yeah right,_ his demon side retorted, _she's as close to a mate as you'll ever get. Admit it, we both want this 'school' thing out of the picture._

Inuyasha growled to himself.

"Hi," Kagome smiled cheerfully to him.

"Why are you back so early?" Inuyasha snapped. As her smile slipped a little he quickly added in a softer tone, "Not that I mind or anything."

"Oh, well I asked my teachers if I might be able to take their tests early and they agreed that I could take them after school. There is one teacher that told me I couldn't, so I have to go back in two days," Kagome explained.

Inuyasha nodded, satisfied with her explanation. "You should get your teachers to do this all the time. Then you wouldn't have to spend all your time at that fucking 'school'."

"Inuyasha, I do have friends there. I like to see them once in a while," Kagome frowned.

"Then what's different this time?" Inuyasha asked, not really caring at all. She was back, that's all that matters.

Kagome faltered, her face flushing a bit. "Er...nothing. They weren't there this time," she lied easily.

Inuyasha frowned and sniffed. "You're lying."

"No I'm not, why would I lie?" Kagome plastered on a fake smile once again. It was becoming a nervous habit, she thought to herself.

"I can tell when you're lying," Inuyasha growled. "Fear slips into your scent."

"Ahh..." Kagome swallowed.

"And never mind your scent, that smile is creeping me out," he said, taking a wary step backward. "If it creeps out half-demons then you know it's bad."

"Hey!" Kagome yelled, grabbing a chunk of his hair. "I could have stayed home all this time and slept all day, but I decided to come back here. If you keep insulting me like this-,"

"KAGOME!" Shippo yelled, jumping and attaching himself to Kagome's neck.

"Shippo," Kagome patted his head in greeting. She looked up to see if Inuyasha was still going to argue with her, but found him hefting her pack up to his shoulder instead.

"Lets go back," He told her gruffly, walking ahead of her.

Kagome nodded and trailed after him. Once glance at Shippo showed her that he had already fallen asleep on her shoulder. She chuckled a little bit, wondering how in the hell he could fall asleep that fast.

A slight nudge to her hand caught her attention and she looked up to Inuyasha's face to see a light red blush settling on his features. She looked down to see his hand nudging hers lightly as they walked side-by-side.

She smiled before an evil thought crossed her mind and she decided to ignore the pressing hand. If he wanted to hold her hand that bad, then he could grab it himself.

Their pace was slow and leisurely and Kagome turned her face to the sun, welcoming it's warmth on her face. She breathed in the fresh air of the unpolluted era and let it all out, forcing out the events of the day with it. She wanted nothing more than to just forget it all, and take a warm, relaxing dip in the hot spring.

Inuyasha's hand nudged against hers again.

Kagome sighed and gave in, threading her fingers through his and squeezing his hand. After a second or two, his lax hand squeezed hers and held it tight.


	3. Chapter three

Disclaimer: Inuyasha and the others are borrowed for the time being. They originally belong to Rumiko. I will return them...eventually....

* * *

"Kagome," Shippo whined as he fell on top of her knee dramatically. "I'm bored."

Kagome, sitting cross-legged inside Kaede's hut, smiled and continued batting Inuyasha's hands away from the ramen cups that sat innocently in front of her.

"Damnit, Inuyasha, they've got two minutes left! Can you not wait that long?" Kagome fumed lightly.

"Shut up. I'm hungry," Inuyasha turned his attentions to her bag, scrounging inside for chips.

Sango chuckled a bit, amused at her friend's predicament. She brought a rag up to her boomerang bone and began cleaning off all the dust that had accumulated from leaning against the hut all day.

"Sango," Miroku's voice whined next to her. "I'm bored."

"Entertain yourself," Sango replied tightly. Her body snapped up as she felt Miroku's head fall atop her knee, much like Shippo.

Huffing, she shoved his head off her knee and forced it to the ground.

"Kagome-chan, is evening meal ready yet?" She asked, keeping one hand on the monk's head to keep him from trying anything more.

"Mou! Not you too, Sango!" Kagome turned her head around to see Miroku, face down on the floor, head deep in cleaning rags. "Er...Sango? I don't think he can breathe like that."

"Keh," Inuyasha's hand reached out and grabbed a cup of ramen before Kagome could stop him. "Two minutes are up, bitch."

Sighing, Kagome distributed the cups around the group, and was received with thanks. Especially from a blue-faced Miroku, who seemed a little oxygen deprived.

Their little group soon settled into a comfortable silence, each eating their meal in peace. Or, in Inyasha's case, slurping their meal loudly.

Sango broke the slurping noises first. "Kagome-chan?"

"Hm?" Kagome looked up from her meal to meet Sango's inquisitive stare.

"Why is it you didn't stay for longer in your time? You could have, you know, we wouldn't mind," Sango added assuredly.

"There are no rumors or the shikon shards anyway," Miroku added, nodding. "You really should take some time off."

Kagome turned to her friends. "Is it not okay that I'm here?" She asked, confused.

"No! No, of course not," Sango assured her. "We were just wondering-,"

"Why it is you're here when it's obvious that every chance you get, you go prancing back to your own time," Inuyasha bit out before slurping up the rest of his Ramen.

Kagome's eyebrow twitched. "Sit."

"Aagh!"

Kagome turned back to Miroku and Sango. "My friends weren't at school, and I had most of my exams over with, so I saw no point in staying there."

"What about staying with your family?" Miroku inquired. "Surely you miss spending time with them."

Kagome paused. How could she explain that? If she went home, her mother would expect her to go to school. Normally, she would be the one pushing herself to go, but...

After today, she wasn't so sure anymore. She felt Taka's eyes on her all day, and it wasn't the pleasant stare that Ayumi thought it was. It was downright creepy. And if that wasn't enough, he brushed up against her twice.

It had to have been deliberate. There was more than enough room to walk past her desk without touching her at all. But when Taka stood to solve a problem on the board, per the instructor's request, he brushed up against her in a slow, deliberate way that made her skin crawl.

Coming back to his seat, Kagome moved away slightly in the opposite direction, hoping to get out of his range. And yet, he seemed to lean...and still managed to brush up against her.

Kagome shuddered slightly from the memory.

"Oi," Inuyasha's voice brought her back to the present.

"My family understands that I want to be here," Kagome replied to Miroku.

Sango and Miroku nodded, both pleased with her answer.

A silent hanyou on her right was not.

* * *

"Oi!"

Kagome froze in the middle of undressing, both arms struggling to hold up her bra before it could fall.

"Sit!" She yelled, satisfied when she heard Inuyasha yelp and hit the ground five feet behind her. "I told you I was taking a bath."

"I know that! I just wanted to talk to you apart from the others!" Inuyasha shouted before pulling himself out of his new crater. He caught sight of her bare back and swallowed. "I thought I could catch up to you before you started undressing," he explained as a way of apologizing.

Kagome turned her head slightly to see him turn his head to the side, a faint redness settling itself across his nose. "Turn around," she ordered.

"You're not going to sit me again?" Inuyasha's ears perked.

"As long as you keep your back turned, you can talk to me," Kagome replied. "But keep in mind if you do peek, I'm going to 'it' you into the next life."

Inuyasha nodded, turning around. He waited until the rustling of clothing spotted and a slight splash broke the silence. "Oi, you listening?"

"Hang on," Kagome protested, dunking herself in the spring once more before reaching over for her shampoo. "Ok, what's on your mind?"

"You lied."

Kagome blinked. "Care to be more specific?"

"To Sango and Miroku."

Kagome forced a nervous laugh. "My scent again?"

Inuyasha nodded.

"Gotta figure out how to put a stop on that," she muttered to herself. "Maybe heavy perfume would work."

"Why? So you can smell all day?" Inuyasha snorted. "All it does is make me want to hurl. I can still smell everything else, anyway."

Kagome frowned. "What 'everything else'?"

"Keh!" Inuyasha felt his face heat up again. There was no way he was going to answer that...not to her. She 'sits' him enough already, he'd only make it worse if he told her he could smell the phases of her monthly cycle. "Why'd you lie?" He settled for changing the subject.

Kagome sighed. "I didn't want them to think...that I was, well, paranoid."

"Eh?" Inuyasha's ears perked in curiosity. "Paranoid?"

"Aa," She nodded. "You see...there's this new boy at our school."

At the mention of another male around Kagome's school, Inuyasha growled. "What? More?"

"One more," Kagome nodded, trying to appease him. She knew he was already in a fit about her school after he overheard there were boys there, too.

"What does this have to do with anything?" Inuyasha bit out.

"His name is Taka, and-,"

"You got close enough to him to learn his name?!" Inuyasha yelled at her. "No wonder you smell bad today, you've got his scent all over you!"

Kagome felt her eyebrow twitch. "Sit!"

"Arghhh!"

"I knew I shouldn't have said anything," She groused as she lathered up her hair with shampoo.

Inuyasha took a deep breath and picked himself up from the ground, re-arranging his clothes back into place without thinking too much about it, and sat back down, arms crossed. "Go on."

Surprised, Kagome stared at his back for a moment, watching his ears twitch and swivel in her direction. "Hang on," she replied after a pause.

Inuyasha heard her head go under and waited not-so-patiently as she washed off her 'shampoo'.

By the time she had re-emerged, Kagome had collected her thoughts. "This guy Taka...I don't like him."

Now _that _surprised Inuyasha. Kagome liked everybody, didn't she? She was always going on about how great some people were, even though he knew the truth: they were all shit.

Miroku was an excellent example. The lecherous monk had kidnapped her, took the shikon fragments, groped her, asked her to bear his child, and to top it all off, tried to suck him into his fucking wind-tunnel for crying out loud.

And yet she took a gamble with her own life, to prove that he really was a good person.

"You don't...like him?" Inuyasha pressed on.

"He...bothers me," Kagome reluctantly admitted.

"Bothers you how?" Inuyasha growled. If that fucking human laid one hand on his Kagome...

"I don't know. I caught him staring at me during class." Kagome shivered. "Maybe it was nothing, but still...it wasn't pleasant."

"Keh," Inuyasha shrugged, slight annoyance coursing through him. The thought of a weak human staring at what was his annoyed him.

_Argh! Not mine!_ He argued with himself. _Would you shut up?_

His demon side snarled at him viciously in his head.

"Well, either way...if I'm not there as often, maybe he'll lose interest in me and decide that Yuka's way better looking." Kagome watched his back carefully as she hopped out of the spring and wrapped a towel around her body.

"Why didn't you just tell Sango and Miroku?" Inuyasha inquired.

Kagome shrugged. "Like I said before...I didn't want to seem paranoid."

"But you told me," he pointed out.

Kagome felt a heat spread across her face. "That's different."

"How?"

"I...," Kagome trailed off, uncertain. "I'm not sure."

"Keh!" Inuyasha replied with usual tact. A sense of pride did make his chest puff up a bit. Kagome trusted in him, and that was all the explanation he needed. "Hurry up and get changed."

Kagome blinked. "You're going to wait for me?"

"Fuck, you think I'm going to let some youkai just walk up and steal my tama detector?"

Kagome felt a definite twitch in her eyebrow. "SIT!"

_Crash!  
_

_A/N: Tee hee! Now you must all pleaseeee review. distributes cookies I'll have the next chapter up as soon as possible. Turns around and takes a nap_


	4. Chapter four

Disclaimer: Nope, Inuyasha doesn't belong to me. However, I do own this lovely bowl of peanut butter.

A/N: Yay! Chapter four! It's up faster than I expected of myself. (passes out cookies in celebration)

* * *

Shippo glanced nervously at the grinning hanyou across from him. Looking down at his hand, he screwed his face into a deep, concentrating look. He looked back up to see the hanyou gloating at him and squeaked in fear. He looked to Kagome for comfort, but she wasn't looking his way. Nibbling on her bottom lip, she was oblivious to the kit's need.

Shippo looked around to see Miroku next to him, not looking pleased at all. His famous wandering hand was currently switching items around in his hand. A drop of sweat rolled down the side of his face, and it went unheeded.

Sango glanced up at the group, a confused look on her face. She looked down for a moment, then up again. Taking a deep breath, she broke the silence with a simple, loaded question.

"Kagome...do you have any fours?"

Kagome smiled. "Go fish."

Sango sighed in frustration and leaned forward to grab a card from the pile in the middle of the circle. She obviously did not draw a four, Shippo surmised as she huffed and sat back in her spot.

Inuyasha pounced on his turn. "Shippo, hand over that king."

Shippo squeaked. "I...don't know what you're talking about."

"The king," Inuyasha snapped his fingers and held out his hand. "Hand it over."

"How do you know I even have one?" Shippo demanded.

"Shippo, you've been asking everybody for a king the past ten turns," Miroku calmly pointed out.

Shippo pouted and handed over the card.

"Hah!" Inuyasha smirked and put down his last card, a king, along with the king he had acquired. "I win!"

"Again," Kagome muttered in annoyance. "You think you'd let one of us win once in a while."

"Keh! Fat chance," Inuyasha gloated. "What'd I win this time?"

Kagome reached inside her bag and pulled out a cup of ramen. "Knock yourself out," she pouted as she slapped it into his hand.

"I can't believe we all lost again," Sango huffed, throwing her cards down onto the pile. "There are four of us, and only one of him."

Inuyasha grinned at his winnings and turned to poke Kagome in the side, demanding her attention.

"Well, unless he can see through the cards..." Kagome trailed off, gathering up her playing cards and ignoring Inuyasha.

This, of course, angered the impatient hanyou, and he nudged her side again a little harder.

"I still say he cheats," Shippo spat out.

"Shippo, it's impossible to cheat at this game," Kagome calmly pointed out.

"Oi!" Inuyasha nudged her again.

"We should play another round," Miroku commented as he handed Kagome his cards.

"Why? So we can all lose again?" Sango scoffed.

"Ka-go-me!"

"_What?!_" Kagome finally snapped, turning around to face the hanyou angrily.

Inuyasha put on his best puppy-dog eyes. "Make the ramen for me?"

"No! Make it yourself," Kagome huffed, stuffing the deck back into her bag.

"Keh! I let you go home today to take your last test and this is how you thank me?"

"Thank you?" Kagome yelled. "I had to practically 'it' you into the ground before you would let go of my bag. You didn't 'let me' go home...I ran home!"

"If you make the ramen, I'll let you win next time," Inuyasha replied.

Sango immediately held out a hand. "Give it here! I'll do it!"

Inuyasha cradled the ramen to his chest and glared suspiciously at the proffered hand. "Do you even know how to make it?"

Kagome rolled her eyes. "Give it here," she ordered before grabbing the cup and walking over to the fire pit to heat up the water. "You're such a baby, you know that?"

Inuyasha ignored her and leaned against a tree, closing his eyes. "Monk, how much further until we reach the village you told us about?"

"We should reach it by midday the day after tomorrow," Miroku replied, getting comfortable against a fallen log. "If we're walking, that is."

"What did the rumor say?" Sango asked as she set up her own sleeping area, well away from Miroku's.

"Nothing much," Miroku admitted. "The village believes the lord present there has been possessed by a demon. There have been villagers mysteriously disappearing since his sudden change in behavior."

"You think a shikon shard is at work?" Kagome asked, pouring the boiling water into the foam cup.

"It's possible," Miroku nodded. "They say he used to be a kind leader, but about a month ago, he went away on a journey. Ever since his return, things have been amiss in the village."

Inuyasha snorted. "Sounds like the ruler's just an asshole."

"Inuyasha!" Kagome frowned at him. "That's horrible!"

"Probably true," he countered.

"In any case," Miroku cut in. "We'll find out soon enough, ne?"

Kagome nodded and turned to spread out her sleeping bag on the forest floor. Carefully, she lifted a sleeping Shippo from the ground and settling him inside the warm covers. A sound from the impatient hanyou let her know that the two minutes were up and she handed him the foam cup, refraining from screaming at him to get it himself.

Kagome stood, walking over to her bag and reaching in to pull out her science text. Walking back to the fire, she got as close to it as possible so that the light would be sufficient before opening it to the appropriate page. She found her section and began reading.

For the next two chapters, she only heard one slap before Miroku and Sango quieted down and fell into an easy sleep. Well into the third chapter, Kagome stretched out her arms and glared enviously at their sleeping bodes. Her own eyes felt like sandpaper, but she shook herself and returned to reading.

"How was your 'school'?" Inuyasha's soft voice broke her studying.

Wide eyed, Kagome turned to see him still situated on the ground against a tree. He was not in his usual branch that night, and she blinked in confusion for a moment before realizing that he was waiting for an answer.

Unsure of what to say, she shrugged. He continued to stare, waiting for an answer.

"It was fine," she finally replied, turning back to her text. She frowned slightly, confused. Inuyasha never asked about her school or tests.

"I meant the boy," Inuyasha's voice broke her musings once more.

"Taka?"

Inuyasha nodded.

Kagome smiled. "Actually, I only caught him looking at me once. The rest of the time, he seemed to forget I was even there." Which was a relief, she added to herself silently.

"So it worked," Inuyasha remarked after a pause. "You being gone for a while."

"I guess," Kagome shrugged.

He nodded once more and Kagome turned back to her book, reading two more paragraphs before he spoke again. "You should stay here, then. So he can't bother you at all."

Kagome rolled her eyes. "And what about my grades?"

"Do you need them?"

Kagome pushed down the homicidal urge that was rising in her chest. "Yes," she but out. "I've explained this time after time to you."

"But do you really need them here?" Inuyasha dipped his head so that she couldn't see his face through his bangs.

Kagome paused for a moment, her heart in her throat. "Inuyasha...you're not suggesting...that I..."

"Forget it," Inuyasha interrupted harshly. "Nevermind."

Relief coursed through her veins and she sat for a moment, staring at the printed words in her book. A cold, sad feeling quickly replaced her moment of euphoria. Could she really stay in one time? If she stayed here with Inuyasha and the others...her family would be lost to her forever. And if she stayed with her she really live without Inuyasha?

She glanced at him, wondering what he was thinking almost asking her to stay with him. Did he forget about Kikyo?

A little part of her mind rejoiced at this thought, but she quickly squelched it down. She was not going to be petty, or jealous, she told herself. No, she was going to study and take Inuyasha's advice about forgetting the whole thing.

Looking down at the page she was currently on, she went back to reading. 'More like skimming,' she told herself and decided that she had studied enough upon realizing that she had read the same paragraph five times without really comprehending it.

She slammed shut the book and stood to place it back in her bag when the sound of a falling paper reached her ears. Kagome looked down to see a small, white envelope by her foot, her name scribbled across the front.

Curiosity got the better of her, and she kneeled down to pick up the letter. By the looks of the handwriting, it wasn't from any of her friends. No, this handwriting was terrible...in fact, it looked like a boy's handwriting.

'Oh god,' Kagome rolled her eyes. 'What have my friends talked Hojo into doing now?'

She turned the envelope over in her hands and slid her finger under the flap, tearing it open. She pulled out a single card that lay inside and stared at the blank note for a moment before frowning.

She slowly turned it over to see if anything was written on the back before emitting a small gasp.

Printed on the back, in small, scribbled letters was a simple message.

_I'm watching you.  
_

* * *

_A/N: Dun dun dun....yes, I know it's a corny line....but the evil leprechauns made me do it I tell you! I'm serious!  
_

_So now you must review, or chapter 5 might take a long time to make its way up here....MWAHAHAHAHA! ACK! No! I'm just kidding! (stretches hand out to leaving readers) Please come back! I have cookies!_


	5. Chapter five

Disclaimer: I'm just borrowing Inuyasha and the gang. If they return to Rumiko traumatized, then that's not my fault.

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Kagome had started her day like any other; her portable alarm clock woke the camp with its shrill cry at the crack of dawn. Wiping the sleep from her eyes, she stood, helped Shippo climb out of the sleeping bag and began the tiresome task of rolling it up. Once her bed was tucked away, she gathered her supplies and toddled down to a nearby creek to wash up.

It was just like yesterday, and it felt like nothing had changed to the rest of the group...but inside, Kagome felt very disturbed.

The note itself was tucked away within her science text, and nearly all of last night Kagome had replayed her entire day, looking for a possibly way the note could have been slipped into her bag. Not once did she recall a time when her book was out of her sight or reach.

Of course, her immediate suspicions had gone straight to Taka. But after twenty minutes of class, she hadn't felt his gaze all day. He had seemed to lose interest in her. Not only that, but he had not been near her the whole day...there was no possible way he could have slipped the note in her book.

So who was the note from? Her thoughts raced from one possibility to another. It could have been her friends playing a prank on her, right?

No, she shook her head. Her friends were too preoccupied with school to think up of a scary prank like this. Come to think of it, they weren't the type of girls to play pranks anyway.

Frustrated at her own inability to recall anyone else with a grudge, she kneeled next to the water. She stared at her reflection for a moment, biting her lip. 'Alright,' she told herself, 'you've been given a very strange, and rather sinister note. If you were smart, you'd be telling somebody. Like Inuyasha.'

_Woah, woah, _her inner voice spoke up. _Backup a minute. Since when did 'somebody' automatically become 'Inuyasha'?_

_Since you began trusting him more than anybody else, _a more trusting voice replied. Nodding in agreement with the second voice, she sat and pondered her options for a long while before realizing that she had not washed up yet.

Kagome pulled out her toothbrush and piled toothpaste on top. She was simply going to ignore the note, that's all. Brushing her teeth furiously, she nodded to herself. Yes, whoever sent that note obviously sent it to her in hopes of getting some kind of reaction, right? What better way to thwart their plans than to act as if she had never received it in the first place?

She was in the process of rinsing out her mouth when everybody's favorite hanyou stomped over to the creek and began splashing water all over his face. This, of course, was Inuyasha's equivalent to a morning shower.

Rolling her eyes, she wordlessly handed him a small washcloth. He stared at it for a moment, confused, then cautiously took it from her hands and used it to wipe his face dry.

"No, no," Kagome leaned over and took it back from him. "You use it to clean your face." She leaned over and dunked it in the creek.

"Why? I wet it, isn't that good enough?"

"Do you want dirty skin forever?" Kagome asked rhetorically, bringing the wet facecloth to his face and scrubbing his cheeks furiously.

"Oi!" Inuyasha immediately leaned back, trying to escape. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

Kagome grabbed his chin and pulled him back. "Hold still," she ordered. "You've got a dirt smudge."

Inuyasha huffed and growled, but stayed still while she scrubbed. Oh, he kept trying to wriggle this way and that, but Kagome knew how to settle that down quickly. After all, she had years of experience from trying to clean up Shippo.

Once Kagome was satisfied with her work, she rocked back on her heels and smiled. "There, now don't you feel better?"

"No," Inuyasha replied rudely. "My cheeks feel raw."

"Good," Kagome replied distractedly as she dunked the washcloth back into the stream before washing her own face. "That means they're clean."

"Are you saying I'm dirty?" Inuyasha huffed.

"No," She replied truthfully.

Inuyasha sat back and waited for some kind of reassurance from her, saying that she knew him to be hygienic, but after a good long while he knew none would come. Irritated, he tried to get a response in the only way he knew how. "Keh! Well you're not exactly rose-smelling either."

_Liar, _the ever-present voice popped up in his mind. _She smells delicious. _

'Shut it,' he retorted to himself.

"Well I should hope not," Kagome frowned. "My lotion is supposed to smell like cherry blossoms."

Inuyasha blinked. "Eh?"

"Sit."

"Gah!" _Crash!_

Kagome yawned loudly and turned to put all of her supplies away. Standing back up again, she stretched her arms high above her head and walked away from the prostrate hanyou. "Get a move on, would you?"

Inuyasha growled. That damn bitch and her damn spell. One of these days he was gonna...

_You're gonna what? _His youkai self taunted in his mind. _Eat her?_

A heat pooled lower in his belly as he caught on to the double meaning behind his own words. Cursing himself for letting his imagination run amok, he quelled down his heated interest and stood up, brushing the dirt from his clothes.

That taken care of, he stomped back to camp, hot on Kagome's heels. By the time they had reached the camp, everybody else was ready and waiting to go. Shouldering his way past Kagome, his arm swooped down and lifted her pack before she could reach it. Hefting the yellow monstrosity onto his shoulder, he kept walking, leading the way.

"Let's get a move on!" He shouted back to them. He kept the pace up so that he could remain in front of the group. The last thing he needed was anyone asking why his face was so heated. And trust the most perverted one in the group to notice the little things, like he usually did. Thankfully, he had swept past Miroku fast enough that the monk couldn't have possibly seen his face.

Collective groans went up from behind him as he heard them shuffle about, standing up and starting to follow him.

"You know," Sango mused aloud, grumpy over her lack of proper breakfast time. "I don't remember voting Inuyasha as leader here." She looked over to Miroku. "You?"

Miroku brought his finger to his chin in a thoughtful pose. "I don't seem to recall a time." A smirk passed over his face. "But now since we're voting for a leader, I'll have to get a move on the campaigning, now shall I?"

"Eh?" Sango frowned, confused. "What do you---AIIIIIIIII! Hentai!" She slapped him as his hand grasped her bottom.

"I don't think you'll get many votes that way Miroku," Shippo remarked as he hopped from Sango's shoulder to Kagome's.

"Ahh, young Shippo, you underestimate the power of attraction," Miroku smiled.

"Right about now I'm feeling more attraction to Sesshoumaru than you," Sango muttered viciously.

"Less talking, more walking," Inuyasha shouted over his shoulder.

"Yes Master," Kagome rolled her eyes and slowed down to walk with Sango.

"Keh! Finally the bitch learns her place!" Inuyasha retorted, smirking to himself.

"Oh this is ridiculous," Kagome sighed. "How much further until we get there?"

"Another day," Miroku replied pleasantly, softly stroking the stinging red mark on his cheek.

"Wonderful," she muttered. She sighed and resigned herself to the fact that she would be walking all day. "Anybody want to play the license plate game?" She asked wryly.

"Eh?" Inuyasha half turned towards her, his eyebrows lifted in slight confusion. "What's that?"

Kagome brightened immediately, "Well, it's a game from my time that you play on road trips-,"

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted and turned back around, ignoring the rest of the explanation. It was more idiotic ideas from her time that irritated the hanyou. As far as he was concerned, the only good things to ever come out of the future were ramen and chips. And Kagome, he silently added.

Speaking of Kagome, Inuyasha's ears flattened as he looked back towards her. She didn't seem happy that he wasn't listening anymore. Maybe he should have waited for her to finish blathering on.

Shrugging to himself, he turned back around and quickened the little group's pace.

* * *

Yep, he thought to himself as he plopped down against a tree that night, he should have waited.

Growling irritably at the girl sitting near the fire, he tried again to get her attention. "Oi!"

Kagome, for her part, did not reply. Hell, she didn't even give an indication that he existed. It had been like that all day, no matter how many times he looked back at her, she was having none of it. She'd turn her face away from him, refusing to meet his eyes.

To the humans in the group, it seemed like he had gotten off pretty easy. But to an inu youkai, turning aside the face and refusal to respond was an indication that the ignored was being cast out.

Inuyasha had a sneaky feeling she had been given tips from Myouga.

Reminding himself to squish the flea as soon as he showed his cowardly face around the group again, he soon set about trying to get Kagome's attentions back. "Kagome?" He inquired, yet again.

"Can't you see she's ignoring you, baka?" Shippo stood up and rested his hands on his hips in what he hoped was an intimidating manner.

Inuyasha looked down at the two-foot tall kit and stared pointedly at him. Shippo squeaked and ran to hide behind Kirara.

"Miroku?" Kagome asked in a sweet tone. "Do you think you could get us some firewood?"

"Of course," Miroku nodded and smiled, standing to run away from the heavy tension waves that had settled on the group since this morning.

"I'll help!" Sango shouted and stood. If Inuyasha said the word 'Kagome' one more time, she was ready to kill him. It was better to remove herself from the temptation.

Inuyasha watched as the two quickly made themselves scarce, and turned back to Kagome. She had settled one of her texts beside her and was reading as she removed the plastic from the many ramen cups.

He looked over at Shippo, who had fallen asleep curled up with Kirara. Good. He didn't want the kit to see this.

Straightening his shoulders, he crawled closer to Kagome. If she was going to inflict youkai punishment on him, then he would respond in kind. Inuyasha took a deep breath...

And promptly let out a pitiful whine.

Kagome blinked and looked up at Inuyasha with wide eyes. Finally, he thought to himself, he had a reaction. Lowering his ears down to the side of his head, he let out another, softer whine.

Kagome sat back, confused. What the hell was he doing? Was he hurt? Was he sick? She lifted her hand to check his forehead for a fever, but dropped it as she saw him move his head closer to hers.

She felt her heart stop as she felt his tongue lap once at her chin.

"Wh-," She stuttered, trying to form a word, but found she could not. What the hell was he doing? Her eyes sought out his drooped ears and turned to look at his remorseful eyes.

"What are you doing?" She finally managed to form the words and they tumbled out of her mouth.

"Apologizing," he replied, his eyes pinning hers.

"By licking my chin?" She asked, incredulous.

The ears drooped even further. Did she not know how to accept? "Do you accept?" The words rushed out of his mouth before he could stop them. "If you do, you need to...," he stopped immediately as his face flushed.

_Why the hell are you still acting submissive to her?_ His inner youkai screamed. _You've shown your remorse!_

_But she still hasn't accepted me back yet! _He raged silently to the demon. _Just shut it for a while, already!_

Kagome took a deep breath. He must be apologizing in his own way. Perhaps a demon thing. It sure as hell wasn't the human way of apologizing, she thought wryly to herself. She almost giggled at the mental image of apologizing to Hojo for standing him up. "How do I respond?" She asked.

Lifting his head, Inuyasha's ears perked. She forgave him?

"I don't need to..." Kagome swallowed. "Lick you back, do I?"

"No, a quick nuzzle will work," Inuyasha replied in a matter of fact manner that startled her.

"N-nuzzle?!" She leaned back.

Inuyasha frowned. "You cast me out, now you have to take me back."

"Take you back _where_?" Kagome squeaked.

"I think," a new voice popped up from Kagome's shoulder. "That my Lord is feeling that you've punished him in a very youkai manner, and now you must accept his apology in the same way."

"Myouga!" Kagome sighed in relief. He could sort this confusion out, right?

Inuyasha reached out and squished the flea-demon between his thumb and forefinger.

Or not.

"My Lord!" Myouga protested once he had regained semblance once more.

"You mean to tell me you never explained anything about inu youkai to Kagome?" Inuyasha frantically asked his retainer.

"Err...was I supposed to?"

Inuyasha panicked. No wonder she was giving him weird looks. She didn't know what the hell he was doing! For all she knew, he licked her chin for no good reason!

_Good one, _the youkai smirked.

Frantic now, Inuyasha was torn between trying to explain his actions while running, or just plain running.

Kagome saw the look on his face and decided she had to do something quick to calm him down. Throwing caution into the wind, she reached forward and grabbed onto his haori. Leaning close, she nuzzled the side of his cheek with hers, delighted when the tension in his body left in a whoosh.

Unfortunately for Inuyasha, after that last whoosh, he couldn't seem to draw another breath.

Her warm cheek rested against the side of his, awaiting some kind of reaction. A warm, intoxicating scent wafted under his nose and he stayed still, allowing the feminine scent to wash over his body in a calming, peaceful manner. The fingers that were tightly grasping his haori loosened slightly and she slowly tried to retreat back to her original spot.

Nuzzling the top of her head, he inhaled her scent once more before allowing her to sit back, not caring much for the awkward silence that befell the both of them. Kagome's gaze jumped from various spots of the forest before jumping back to Inuyasha, who kept his gaze settled on her the whole time.

"I think," Myouga interrupted the scene. "That now is a good time to start teaching Kagome about the inu youkai tradition."

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_A/N: Yay! What did you guys think? PLEASE REVIEW! My fingers refuse to type unless I get some feedback. After all, if you guys don't tell me anything, how will I know where to improve?_


	6. Chapter six

Disclaimer: (clutches a plate of tater tots) NO! You can't have them! They're MINE DAMNIT! ... Oh! You mean Inuyasha? Nope, he's not mine. But could you pass me the ketchup please?

_A/N: Wow, I had a hard time thinking of where to go for this chapter...lol. But your reviews made it all possible! Thanks, you guys! Please keep reviewing, it really encourages me! (looks between reviewers and her plate of tater tots) Well...I suppose you could have one._

Inuyasha: What about me?

_No. Go back to your ramen._

Inuyasha: But I want a tater tot!

_Osuwari!_

Inuyasha: Keh! Doesn't work with you, bitch!

Kagome: Inuyasha! Osuwari!

_(CRASH)  
_

* * *

"Take, for instance, this little group," Myouga was rattling on from his perch on Kagome's shoulder. "I suppose, in a way, you could say that Inuyasha has assumed leader role. He protects the group, and has proven to be the strongest male."

"Should I take offence to that?" Miroku turned to ask Sango, who seemed to be enthralled by Myouga's explanation.

"Shh," She lightly smacked his arm. "I've never heard about inu youkai packs first hand before."

Kagome was half-listening to Myouga's explanation, preferring instead to watch Inuyasha's back as he stiffly led the way back home in front of the group. Their trip to the village had been a waste. The worst part, in Kagome's mind, was that Inuyasha had been right. Their leader was just a cruel man and there was nothing controlling him. No jewel shard, no demon.

It was actually a first, she thought to herself. Being in the feudal era, it was not unheard of for lords to be uncaring and selfish, but it was the first time Kagome had seen such inhumane acts committed without the work of some evil behind it. And this being the case, there was nothing they could do to help the villagers. Kagome felt terrible about it, but felt a little bit better when Miroku confided in her that he found a small group of rebels who were planning on revolting.

Realizing that Myouga was waiting for some kind of response, she tired to remember what he last had said. Something about packs? She looked down to her shoulder, and gave Myouga a confused look. "Pack? Dogs have packs?"

"Of course," Myouga replied, happy that she was still paying attention to his lessons. "You've never heard of this?"

"No," Kagome shook her head. "But then again, back home, nearly all dogs have been domesticated."

"Ah," Myouga nodded, not entirely sure what 'domesticated' meant. "Well as I was explaining"

"What role do I have in the pack?" Shippo popped up from Sango's shoulder.

"The idiot!" Inuyasha threw over his shoulder.

Kagome felt her eyebrow twitch dangerously. "Inuyashhaaa" Sensing danger, Inuyasha gulped and turned back around.

"Why, a pup of course," Myouga answered Shippo. "You're too young to be considered anything else."

Shippo pouted for a moment, then brightened immediately once a thought occurred to him. "Does that mean that Kagome is my mother?"

"Oh, Shippo, that's sweet, but-,"

"Of course," Myouga interrupted Kagome, who heard him and tripped over her own feet.

"Kagome-chan!" Sango rushed over to help Kagome to her feet, but Inuyasha beat her to it. Gently lifting her up, he looked over her body to see if she was hurt at all. An ugly red stain spread across her knee, and he snarled to himself, angry that he couldn't have reached her in time before she fell.

"You're bleeding," He said gruffly, lifting her into his arms and settling her on a tree stump a few feet away.

"It's not bad," Kagome protested, looking to see if any rocks were imbedded inside the cut. It stung like hell, she added silently to herself, but not bad, considering the type of wounds he was used to getting.

"Doesn't matter, you're still bleeding," Inuyasha replied, gently brushing his thumb over the scrapes to brush off the dirt.

Meanwhile, a few feet over, Miroku and Sango were staring with identical, wide-eyed expressions. "What the hell is going on?" Sango asked Miroku under her breath. "Did I miss something? Why is Inuyasha acting so...?"

"So concerned?" Miroku finished for her, a small smile playing upon his lips. "Ahhh...Sango, rest assured, if you cut your knee, I'd do the same for you."

Sango raised a hand to slap the monk, but she could find nothing perverted in his words. Frowning, she looked over to see Miroku smiling at her, a genuine look on his face. She blinked in confusion for a moment, then blushed brightly. "T-thank you, houshi."

Miroku grinned wider and Sango shyly smiled back at him. Unfortunately, the smile didn't last long as she felt a familiar hand caressing her hip in an even more familiar way. Finally having her perverted excuse, she slapped him.

"Oi, you two done acting like idiots, yet?" Inuyasha shouted to them as he walked towards the group, Kagome settled on his back.

"Let's go," Sango replied in an even tone, jumping on Kirara's back and waited impatiently for Miroku to do the same.

"Thank you for not leaving," Miroku smiled once he had settled behind her.

"Don't be silly," Sango replied, keeping her voice cool and even. "I was waiting for Shippo." Cuddling said fox kit to her chest, she sat back as Kirara took to the skies.

"Idiots," Inuyasha rolled his eyes and took off after them, taking care not to jar Kagome's knee against the harsh fabric of his haori.

"Thank you," Kagome's soft voice reached his ears.

Smiling to himself, he gave her an abrupt nod and began moving at a faster pace to catch up with Kirara. Slightly worried at the change in speed, Kagome pressed herself tighter against his back.

At took all Inuyasha had to stay concentrated on his jumps, and not the intoxicating girl pressed against his body. The youkai still silently raged inside his mind, the smell of her blood driving him insane. He had affixed one of her 'band-aids' to the scrape, but the sticky bandage did nothing to hide the smell.

_Mate's hurt, _the youkai repeated over and over. _Bleeding. Make it stop._

'I can't,' he replied. 'There's a bandage on it, it'll have to be good enough for now.'

_Make it stop! Lick the blood away!_ It snarled.

'Are you crazy? First her chin, and now you want me to lick her _knee_? Hell no!' Inuyasha raged against himself. 'You've gotten me into enough shit, now _shut up._'

"Inuyasha?" Kagome's voice broke through his one-sided fight. "Are you alright?"

"Keh! I'm fine bitch, now shut up until we get back to the village."

Kagome huffed in annoyance. "Don't yell at me, you jerk! I was just wondering why you were tense all of a sudden!"

"I'm _fine,_ I said!"

Kagome growled and the demon inside Inuyasha jumped with glee. "Stop doing that!" He yelled at her.

"Stop doing what?" Kagome shouted back in his ear.

"Growling like some bitch in heat!" The words escaped his mouth before he could stop to consider them.

"I...you...for...," Kagome sputtered, trying to come up with a full sentence while calming down her heating face. Bitch in heat? Where the hell did he come up with these things?

"We're almost there," Inuyasha pointed out calmly, trying to distract her from his earlier explosion. Maybe if he calmed her down, there would only be one 'sit' in store for him.

"Good," Kagome shouted.

Inuyasha knew that tone, and knew what was coming next. His ears lowered reflexively.

"Because I'm going home!"

* * *

'Ohhhh that jerk!' Kagome thought to herself as she pulled herself out of the well. The minute she had climbed off his back, she sat him once and ran towards the well. The others sighed as if expecting this action, while Myouga jumped after her, catching onto a strand of her hair and holding on for dear life while trying to get her to agree to more lessons.

"It won't matter anyway!" She had shouted at him. "I'll never understand that jerk!"

"But my Lady, wouldn't it make it easier to read his actions for what they really are?" Myouga had frantically tried to come up with a reason to get her to say yes.

Kagome had agreed only when she realized that he wasn't going to let go until she did. The flea was annoying and cowardly at times, but she didn't want him to get squished when the well let her through and not him.

Sighing, she walked up the stairs and slid open the doors to the well house. A loud crash of thunder made her jump and squeal.

"Great!" She huffed, looking out at the pouring rain. "Just great!" Quickly opening her bag, she pulled out a sweater and held it over her head as she ran though the rain towards her house.

Unfortunately, by the time she reached the house, she was soaked more than the sweater. Wringing her hair out as best she could, Kagome slid open the door and threw her body through the opening, wincing as the wind blew the door shut with a loud _bang._

"Sorry," She called out, kicking her shoes off and waiting for somebody to reply. After she had wrung out the rest of her hair over the plant near the door, she frowned and called out again, "Hello?"

Silence met her ears.

Kagome looked around and saw the time on the clock meant it was nearly dinner time. That must be where they were, she thought to herself and walked back to the kitchen.

Walking into the dark and empty room, she frowned and turned on the light. A small white note was left on the table, and she sighed. They must have gone out.

Went to visit with Jii-chan's friends. Be back Monday. Love, mother.

'Monday, huh?' Kagome thought to herself. It was Sunday night, so she wouldn't be home alone for long. Which wasn't a bad thing, she realized. She could get schoolwork done without distractions or interruptions.

Jumping with glee, she ran out of the kitchen and ran up the stairs to her room. 'But first' She thought to herself as her bag was thrown on the floor. 'I need a hot bath.'

* * *

"Mmm...much better," She sighed to herself, wrapped in warm Pj's. She sat down on her bed, absently stroking Buyo's ears. "I really should start on my classwork," she told the fat cat. "What do you think?"

Buyo purred as she continued to rub his ears, and looked up at her with a lazy expression that only a cat could master.

"I agree cat, it's dark out and I should be in bed."

The cat blinked.

Snickering softly to herself, she stood up and promptly let out a shriek as a loud thunder cracked through the sky. She held a hand to her racing heart and let out a deep breath. "Kinda scary, eh Buyo?"

Buyo stopped licking her butt and turned to Kagome with a 'why-are-you-bothering-me?' expression.

"Maybe if I shut the window curtains" Kagome spoke aloud as she toddled her way over and shut them. "Alright, so...school work-oh no!" Kagome gasped. "I almost forgot to lock the front door."

Scoffing at her own forgetfulness, she turned to Buyo. "Hold down the fort for me, will you?" She opened the door and walked out. "Start the Math for me!" She yelled over her shoulder. 'If only' Kagome sighed. 'I hate math.'

Taking the stairs two at a time, she raced down, intent on locking the door, getting some soup and running back up for homework. Crossing the dark room, she quickly locked the door and turned to walk to the kitchen.

Lightening flashed and Kagome froze in the middle of walking by the window. Turning wide eyed, she saw a shadow of a person standing at the shrine steps, unmoving. Lightening flashed again, but the figure was still engulfed in shadow.

Fear gripped her heart, giving it a painful squeeze and she leapt away from the window, and out of view.

Making sure the door was locked, she slid to her knees beside it. It was just someone going to pray, right? People went in and out of the shrine all the time...but never after certain hours. It was just an assumed courtesy that the shrine was left alone after hours, special cases being the exception. But the only time Kagome could remember the shrine being used after dark was about a year ago, when a young woman's father had been admitted into the hospital for dire reasons.

So the figure could be going to pray...but in the middle of a _storm? _

Decision made instantly, Kagome crept closer to the window on her knees. Taking a great deep breath, she closed her eyes and made an effort to calm her racing heart. She leaned her head over, peering out the window slowly. The figure was still there...standing perfectly still. At the angle in which she could see him, he appeared to be staring at the house...not the shrine.

Strangling on a cry, her heart began pounding as she leaned back, pressing her back against the door. What the hell should she do now?

Kagome leaned back further into the door. Why the hell did she come back? Why the hell didn't Inuyasha try and keep her in the feudal era? Why didn't she go back once she realized she was alone?

A hundred and one thoughts raced through her mind as she sat there frozen and panting in fear.

'Okay,' she thought to herself, 'I need a plan. If I look again in the next twenty seconds and its still there, I'm running to the phone and dialing the police. God damnit, Inuyasha, can't you just get really impatient and try and bring me back _now_?'

Kagome steeled herself against her nerves and crouched carefully so that she could peer out again. Where the figure was standing before, there was nothing now.

And that scared her more than anything.

'Where the hell did it go? Oh my god, _where is it?' _Her nerves went through the roof and she stood and ran up the stairs up to her bedroom, locking the door and turning her lamp to the lowest setting, taking the light away from the window.

Buyo looked up from his nap and huffed in annoyance at the disturbance.

Crouching in the corner of her room, Kagome looked around, trying to find some kind of a weapon. Her bows and arrows were still in the feudal era, and there was nothing in her bag that she could think of that would work as well.

She did have a letter-opener in her desk. Heart leaping, she crawled over to her desk drawer and pulled the sharp object out, relieved that she now had some sort of weapon.

Duck-walking back to her former position in the corner, she now had full view of both the door and window, and her gaze leapt from one to the other.

"Just think," she whispered to Buyo, who had dropped next to her on the floor. "A few minutes ago, I was worried over homework. This is too unreal," she shook her head.

Buyo gave her a look.

"You're right. I travel through time to Sengoku Jidai to meet with a hanyou and collect shards of a legendary jewel. This is so...ordinary," she shivered. "It's scary, and I don't like it."

"But I'm okay now," Kagome told the fat cat. "I have a weapon. I'm prepared for anything."

A sharp knock came at her window, and she let out a loud scream.

"Kagome? Kagome, you alright? Let me in!"

Relief flooded through her veins and Kagome felt her limbs become weak. The opener fell to the ground next to her. "Inu-Inuyasha," she muttered weakly.

"What's wrong, Kagome?" Inuyasha's frantic voice came from the other side of the window. "Open up the window!"

Kagome gathered herself up off the floor and managed to use her shaky limbs to walk over to the window. Pulling back the curtains, she was greeted by a wet and frantically concerned hanyou, his gaze traveling up and down her body, searching for wounds.

Unlocking the window, Kagome barely had time to raise her hands to lift it open before Inuyasha did so and came barging in, grasping her shoulders. "What's wrong?"

All of the adrenaline from the past ten minutes caught up to her and Kagome barely had time to grasp onto his haori before everything went black.

* * *

A/N: Ah hah! Cliffhanger! And my very first one! (dodges various fruits and vegetables being thrown at her) Relax, relax! I'm half way through writing chapter 7 as we speak, it should be up in the next day or so.

It might be up faster if you REVIEW. (I've become an addict) Please, please?


	7. Chapter seven

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha...however, I do borrow him as many times as possible.

A/N: Woohoo! Thanks for the reviews! And since I got so many, I worked double-time to get this chapter up. So here it is! Enjoy!

(munches on tater tots)

* * *

The very first thing Kagome was aware of was the splitting headache that ripped its way through her skull. Groaning lightly, she found her throat to be scratchy and hoarse, but otherwise fine.

"Kagome?" A frantic voice came from above her head.

Cracking open her eyelids, she was immediately greeted by a pair of molten amber eyes that betrayed the owner's concern and confusion.

"Inuyasha," she breathed, not trusting her voice to work above a whispered level.

"Kagome, are you alright? What happened?"

'Good question...what happened?' she asked herself. She was lying on her bed, the covers askew as if someone had impatiently thrown them aside. Inuyasha was still hovering over her, and she blushed when she saw he was on all fours above her body. She would have pushed him aside if those worried eyes weren't tearing a hole through her conscience, wearing her down.

"Mou, Inuyasha, I'm fine," Kagome gave him a light smile. "You don't need to hover like that."

"Keh!" He snorted. "I'll decide that, thank you. You just fainted dead away, you're lucky I was holding on to your shoulders otherwise you would have hit your head on your desk chair."

'I fainted?' She asked herself. 'Why did I'

Kagome gasped, and the memories of the past couple of hours came flooding back into her mind all at once. She remembered everything from the first glance of the figure to unsteadily making her way to open the window for Inuyasha. "I guess I must have passed out from all the adrenaline shock," she muttered to herself.

"What's that?" Inuyasha pressed, not understanding.

"Nothing," she replied quickly, shifting to sit up.

Inuyasha immediately pressed a clawed hand to her chest, pushing her gently back into her bed. "Stay down," he spoke in a gentle, gruff tone that had heat running through her stomach. "You need to rest."

Swallowing, she tried to push down the stirrings that began to form in her lower belly. This, of course, is not an easy thing to do when you've got a hanyou practically on top of you in your own bed.

Realization broke through the fog-covered haze in her mind and she realized what danger she had been in. She had been alone in the house with no real protection against whatever was out there. Her hands started shaking and a small whimper escaped her throat. Anything could have happened if the lock had been broken. She could have been kidnapped, raped, or even killed and nobody would know.

Her family would assume she was in the feudal era, and Inuyasha would have thought she was still angry with him, and staying in her time. It would be days before anyone missed her.

Inuyasha's body clenched at the smell of fear coming from the girl below him. He had heard the tiny whimper, and did everything he could to rein back the demon inside, fiercely intent on protecting and comforting. She had just fainted head away, the last thing she needed was an overprotective demon trying to calm her down with various licks and nuzzles.

It was the shaky hands that did it.

Kagome had lifted a shaky hand to grasp at his haori and every protective instinct inside of him went into overdrive. Gathering the girl up into his arms, he hugged her fiercely, trying to stop the shaking.

He almost gave a small cry of pleasure when she threw her arms around his neck and began sobbing silently, trying to bury her face into the side of his neck. Relieved that the girl was alright, he clutched her tightly to his chest, shifting and moving around until he settled her comfortably in his lap.

Unable to repress the urge to nuzzle her hair, he inhaled her scent and felt his limbs become weak. "It's okay," he whispered to the still crying girl, half-hoping she would stop crying, and half-hoping she wouldn't so he could hold onto her a little longer.

Kagome's tears had slowed a little, the warmth that engulfed her calming her down. It took a moment to realize that she was situated in Inuyasha's lap, but surprisingly, neither of them were embarrassed by it. Instead, she pressed herself tighter against him and sighed into his warm skin. It felt good to be held for a while.

Inuyasha felt her warm breath puff against his neck and he swallowed, moving from comforting to increasingly uncomfortable. As much as he wanted to keep holding her, he didn't think that Kagome would appreciate any further advances, and judging by his betraying body, that's what was going to happen soon if he didn't step away soon.

"Kagome," he spoke, gently guiding her off his lap and settling her back against some pillows. "Can you tell me now what happened? Do you need a healer?"

"No," Kagome shook her head. "I'm fine. Just a little scare is all."

"Scare from what?" Inuyasha cocked his head to the side.

"Did you..." Kagome began hesitantly. "When you came out of the well house, did you see anyone standing at the shrine steps?"

Puzzled by the odd question, Inuyasha could do nothing but shake his head. "No, I didn't see anybody." He frowned. "Why do you ask? Is something wrong? Was somebody here bothering you?" He finished in a half-growl, angry that somebody had caused her distress.

"I swear I saw somebody," she half-muttered to herself. She didn't want to worry the hanyou with little things like crazy notes from pranksters, but this was big. "If you went out to the spot where I thought I saw somebody, could you catch their scent to see if there really was anybody there?"

Inuyasha shook his head. "No, it's raining. The scent would have been washed away long ago."

Kagome blinked. "How long have I been asleep?"

"A long while," Inuyasha replied. "I was getting worried," he added in a lower voice.

Kagome turned to her clock. "How many times did this go around?" She asked, pointing to the minute hand.

Inuyasha scratched the back of his neck. "Twice, I think."

"Two hours?! No wonder you were getting worried, I'd be frantic after an hour," Kagome replied.

Inuyasha shrugged. "Keh."

Rubbing her forehead, she went back to thinking. One thing was for sure, she decided. She was going back to Sengoku Jidai right now and not coming back until tomorrow night when her family would definitely be here. 'But,' a little voice popped up inside her head, 'what if the person does come back and hurts your family while you're gone?'

Groaning, Kagome pressed her hands into her face.

"Kagome? You alright?" Inuyasha asked.

"Yeah," Kagome swallowed, dreading her next question. "Inuyasha, do you think you could stay with me tonight?"

"Keh! You think I'm going to leave after your little fainting episode, there?" Inuyasha jerked his thumb over to the area by the window.

"Thanks." She braced herself for the next question. "Do you think you could stay with me for the next couple of days...here?"

"What?!" Inuyasha yelled. "What about the-," Taking in her pleading expression, he stopped on his usual rant and sighed. "Fine. But you better not be prancing off back to that 'school' thing of yours and leave me here with your crazy grandfather."

Kagome nodded. "I'll ask mama if it's alright that I stay home for a few days. I'm sure she'll understand if I tell her why."

"You gonna tell me why?" Inuyasha asked in a flat voice, quirking an eyebrow.

Kagome nodded. "I was locking the front door when I saw a figure standing at the top of the shrine steps. I thought it was my imagination, but I got scared anyway and jumped out of the window's view. I looked again and it was still there...it seemed to be staring at the house."

Inuyasha let out an involuntary growl.

"But when I looked again for a third time, it was gone."

"And then?" Inuyasha pressed on.

"So I came up here, locked the door, and you scared the hell out of me when you knocked on the window."

"That's why you screamed?" Inuyasha scoffed. "Idiot. You should have known it was me."

"Yes, well not all of us have the perfect nose," Kagome tapped his nose lightly. "And it's not like you can smell through glass, right?"

Inuyasha snorted, irritated that she had just inadvertently reprimanded him like he was some kind of pup. Those lessons with Myouga had better start soon, or he was going to snap with all of the unintentional signals she was sending out.

"Who else comes through your window?" He scoffed, then narrowed his eyes. "It better be nobody else." He growled threateningly.

Kagome laughed. "No, just you."

"Alright then," Inuyasha sat back, chest puffed slightly.

Kaogme shook her head. "You're hopeless."

"What was that?"

"Nothing," Kagome chuckled, rising to her feet. "You hungry? I can make some ramen." She looked over at her clock. "Even though it's kind of late...11 pm."

"Ramen," Inuyasha replied, rising as well and leading the way downstairs.

"Ramen _please?_" Kagome pressed as they walked down the stairs.

"Go ahead bitch, you're the one cooking it," Inuyasha shrugged.

Grumbling to herself about rude hanyous, she walked towards the kitchen, but noticed Inuyasha striding towards the front door. "Where are you going?" She called out to him.

"I'm checking the area, get started on that ramen."

"But it's raining!" Kagome protested.

"So?" Inuyasha raised an eyebrow.

"So take a jacket or an umbrella, they're by the door there," she pointed them out.

Inuyasha took one look at the weird 'umbrella' contraption and walked right past it to the door. Trying to slide it open, he met resistance. "Kagome?"

"Yes?" She suddenly appeared at his side, angrily holding a jacket aloft on two fingers.

"I can't get the door open."

"That would be because it's locked," She reached past him and slid the lock free. Throwing the jacket over his shoulders, she ignored his protests and managed to get one of his arms through the correct sleeve. "Put it on or I won't make you any ramen."

Growling, Inuyasha slid his other arm through the sleeve and slid the door open angrily, sticking his tongue out at her before leaving the house.

"Baby," Kagome rolled her eyes and walked back to the kitchen, pulling out 4 cups of ramen and unwrapping them with a practiced ease. Reaching inside one of the cupboards she pulled out a pot and filled it with water. Settling it on the stove, she sat back and waited for it to boil.

Inuyasha came back in as she was pouring the boiling water into the cups. "Did you lock the door?" She asked him, her eyes never leaving the boiling water.

"Couldn't figure it out," Inuyasha grunted and fell into place at the table. He chucked off the coat and eagerly awaited the ramen.

Kagome rolled her eyes and left to lock the door, bending down and grabbing the coat on her way. Throwing it on a peg near the door, she slid the lock home and walked back to the kitchen.

Inuyasha had brought all four cups over to the table and was counting under his breath, watching the ramen as if some magical event were to happen once he reached 180.

Kagome sat across from him and pushed the cup he had set for her into his own pile.

Inuyasha sat back, perplexed. "What are you doing? That one's yours."

"I'm not hungry," Kagome replied, getting up to retrieve chopsticks. "What did you find outside?"

"Nothing," Inuyasha grunted. "Get two sets, you're eating."

"No, I'm not hungry," Kagome insisted, placing his chopsticks next to him.

He growled in annoyance, then realized his ramen was ready. Digging in, he devoured an entire cup in less than a minute. "There was nothing out there...no scent, no nothing," He spoke around his last bite.

Kagome nodded. "It could have been somebody visiting the shrine," she remarked.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow. "It's dark out."

Kagome shrugged. "Maybe an emergency?" She jerked back as Inuyasha thrust his chopsticks in her face, a large bite of noodles settled on the end. She shook her head. "I'm not hungry," she repeated again.

"Eat it," He bit out.

Kagome sighed and accepted the noodles. Awkwardly trying to lift the end pieces into her mouth with her fingers, she glared at Inuyasha's amused face.

"I told you to get two pairs," Inuyasha smirked.

"Shut up," Kagome chuckled.

"Hey where's your family? Why aren't they here?" Inuyasha asked in between his second and third cup of ramen.

"On a trip. They'll be back sometime tomorrow," Kagome replied, gathering the empty cups and standing to throw them out.

"Where am I going to sleep?"

Kagome nearly dropped the cups before she could open the trash bin. "Er...Souta's room?"

"Is it next to yours?" Inuyasha asked once he had polished off the last cup.

"Yes," Kagome affirmed.

Inuyasha stood with the last cup and walked over to where she was to throw it out. "Why can't I just sleep in your room?"

Kagome felt her heart leap into her throat. "Sure," she found herself saying. "I'll grab a futon and you can sleep on the floor."

Wait a minute, that wasn't right, she thought to herself. Wasn't her brain supposed to confirm things with her mouth _first_, before she spoke?

Inuyasha nodded. "I like that better. Then I can be closer in case something happens."

On second thought...maybe it was a better idea. "Alright, come on," she grabbed onto his sleeve and dragged him out of the kitchen. "The futon's heavy and I don't think I can get it up the stairs all by myself."

"Keh! Weakling," Inuyasha smirked.

"Don't make me say it," Kagome warned. "I really don't want to slam your stomach into the ground after you ate 4 ramen cups."

"Keh!" Inuyasha shrugged. "Demons don't get sick."

"You're hanyou," Kagome pointed out.

"No shit," Inuyasha poked her in the back. "Lets hurry up and get this futon thing, I'm tired."

"Alright," Kagome replied, already wondering what she was going to tell mama when she found Inuyasha sleeping on her daughter's bedroom floor.

Inuyasha had carried the futon all the way up the stairs and settled it on the floor. Kagome, already in her Pj's, settled into her bed and watched, amused, as Inuyasha tried to do the same. Unfortunately, he kept trying to find a good spot to keep his katana.

Finally finding a good spot on his side, with one arm curled around it, he looked up at the wrapped up bundle that was Kagome.

"Goodnight," she smiled at him.

"Keh. Night."

* * *

A/n: What do you guys think? Did I do okay? PLEASE REVIEW! I'll get the next chapter up as soon as possible if I get more reviews.

(passes out cookies) Thanks for reading! I'm not worthy! : )


	8. Chapter eight

Disclaimer: Awww.....do I have to? (pout) meanies. Inuyasha isn't mine.. blah blah.

A/N: (tears streaming down face) You guys are the greatest! Thanks for reviewing. Please keep it up and I'll write more, and quickly!!

* * *

Kagome awoke to the fresh, tantalizing smell of a cooked breakfast. She kept her eyes closed and snuggled back into the covers, trying to decide whether it was more important to stay warm and snuggled up, or eat a delicious breakfast.

A knock came at the door, and her mother walked in before Kagome could say anything. Sitting upright, she fumbled for words. "Mama, I can explain!"

Her mother frowned in confusion. "Explain what?" She asked.

Kagome turned her gaze to the floor and found no Inuyasha. Hell, there wasn't even a futon or a pillow. "Eh?" She asked stupidly, scratching the back of her head.

Kagome's mother chuckled. "If you're looking for Inuyasha, he's already downstairs eating breakfast."

Kagome felt her face flush, wondering if her mother had jumped to conclusions. "It's not what you think..." she tried to explain. "He was in here because-,"

"Because there was... oh, what were the exact words he used?" her mother pressed a finger to her chin as if trying to remember. "A 'crazy, soon-to-be-dead man scaring the shit out of Kagome'?"

Kagome blinked at the sound of the harsh words coming out of her mother's mouth. "He said all that to you?"

Her mother nodded, smiling. "He seemed very upset that he couldn't catch a scent anywhere around the shrine this morning. He told me the rain had cleared the air last night."

"Ah," Kagome sighed in relief. "So he told you the whole story?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"Well," Kagome fidgeted for a moment. She debated whether or not to tell her mother about the note. The more that she thought about it, the more it seemed highly likely that the two events might be linked together. She might not be able to tell Inuyasha about the odd note, but she could certainly tell her mother, right?

Decision made, she jumped lightly off her bed to reached over for her backpack. "I think there's more." She spoke as she began digging around in the bag for the envelope she had stuck back in her text. "I'm not sure if the two are related...so I didn't want to show Inuyasha at first when I found it...well, I _still_ don't want to," She pulled out the white envelope and handed it to her mother. "But I thought I could show you."

"Why don't you want to show Inuyasha?" Her mother asked as she opened the envelope.

"To tell you the truth, I'm not at all certain what he would do," Kagome gave a nervous chuckle.

Kagome's mother read the note and heaved a deep breath. "Well...there's no way of knowing if the two occurrences are connected, is there?"

"Guess not," Kagome mumbled.

"How did you get this?"

"I found it in my science text while I was studying in the feudal era," Kagome admitted. "Though I don't know how it got there. My text was with me the whole time while I was in school."

Her mother nodded, then put the note back in the envelope. "I'll hold on to this," she told Kagome. "Right now we're not certain of anything, it's just a matter of coincidence. However," she bore holes into Kagome's gaze. "If anything else happens, you come straight to me with it and we'll head over to the police station."

Kagome nodded and felt the tense muscles in her neck immediately loosen up in relief. "Thank you mama. I feel so much better about it."

"I'm glad you're okay," her mother smiled. "Inuyasha did a good job protecting my little girl."

"Mama!" Kagome protested and blushed.

Her mother laughed and gently guided Kagome out the door. "Come along now, breakfast is ready."

"If Inuyasha hasn't eaten it all," Kagome mumbled.

"He's set aside a plate for you," her mother smiled.

"Eh?" Kagome frowned. "Don't you mean 'I' set aside?"

"No," she shook her head. "Inuyasha beat me to it. He said he was still very upset that you didn't eat anything last night."

"Oh, for crying out loud..."

"He also told me you were staying home for a few days, and I agreed that you shouldn't be going to school where there's nobody to protect you."

"Mama," Kagome protested. "I'm not a shrinking violet, I can take care of myself!"

"I'm sure you can dear," her mother smiled at her, "But it would make me feel better if you were here with Inuyasha and I."

"What about Grandpa and Souta?" Kagome asked once they had reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Grandpa stayed a while longer to visit with his friends. He'll be back Thursday," she explained. "And Souta has a school trip starting today."

Kagome nodded and entered the kitchen.

"Kagome! Look! Inuyasha's here!" Souta shouted excitedly around a mouthful of food.

"I know that," Kagome rolled her eyes at her over-eager little brother and sat down in the chair next to Inuyasha. The moment she was settled, he pushed a plate of food meaningfully in her direction.

"Thank you," she murmured and began slowly eating. She was actually kind of touched that he set aside food for her.

"Guess what?" Souta asked Inuyasha suddenly.

"What?" Inuyasha asked flatly, reaching for his third cup of ramen. Kagome's mother had given him a strange look when he requested ramen for breakfast, but she complied, making him three cups.

"I get to go on a class trip for the next few days!" Souta gulped down the last of his orange juice with a grimace. "Mama, are you sure this hasn't gone bad?"

"I'm positive Souta," their mother replied patiently.

Souta frowned warily, and gathered his plates, rushing them over to the sink. "I've got to go. Maybe I'll see you when I get back?" He turned his hopeful eyes to Inuyasha.

"Maybe," Inuyasha shrugged.

"Okay, Ja ne!" Souta scampered out of the kitchen and a loud _bang _a few seconds later signaled his exit.

Kagome's mother chuckled. "He really looks up to you," she commented to Inuyasha.

"Keh," Inuyasha shrugged his shoulders and gulped down the last of his ramen. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Kagome ate her breakfast and an agonizingly slow pace. "Dragging it out won't get you out of eating it," he reminded her.

All of Kagome's nice thoughts about Inuyasha for the morning just went out the window. "Since when do you regulate my meals?" Kagome frowned at him. "Maybe I'm not hungry."

"You have to eat _sometime,_" Inuyasha pointed out.

"I do!" She protested. "I eat all the time. Just because I'm not hungry when _you _want me to eat..."

"Children, please," Kagome's mother held up a hand as a gesture of peace. "Let's not fight this early in the morning."

Both huffed and turned away. Inuyasha crossed his arms and turned to stare out the window, and Kagome stuffed the smallest bite possible in her mouth, just to be contrary.

Her mother sighed and placed her hands flat on the table, helping herself up to her feet. "I've got laundry to do. Kagome, I'm sure you have schoolwork, yes?" At her daughter's nod, she turned to Inuyasha. "Would you like to read a book? I have plenty of thriller novels in the den."

Inuyasha's face turned red. "No thank you," he mumbled politely.

Kagome frowned. What the hell was he blushing for? "Then what are you going to do all day while I'm studying?"

He shrugged. "Eh...I'll just sit around and keep watching the shrine grounds."

"Alright," Kagome's mother smiled and left the room.

Still wondering about that blush, Kagome frowned and went back to her slow-paced eating.

* * *

"So I take it 'sit around and keep watching the shrine' in Inuyasha language loosely translates to 'sit on Kagome's bed and annoy her all day'," Kagome chided lightly as she finished another math problem.

"How am I annoying you? I'm not doing anything!" Inuyasha protested from his perch on her soft pillows.

"I can feel you staring at the back of my head," Kagome answered. "It's distracting and not very pleasant."

"Keh!" Inuyasha crossed his arms. "Maybe I'll stare at something else, then."

"Eh?" Kagome felt heat rise up from her neck to her cheeks. Did he just mean what she thought he meant? No...he wouldn't dare try and stare at her ass. She'd sit him for it. "Hentai," she mumbled under her breath.

"I don't hear any protesting," Inuyasha smirked.

_Was_ he? Kagome licked her lips and half-turned to see Inuyasha staring at...

"My feet?!" Kagome replied, incredulous.

"Why? What did you think I meant?" Inuyasha dragged his gaze up to hers, the smirk still in place. "You were thinking something ecchi, weren't you?"

"Of course not!" Kagome protested, flushing and ducking her face back into her math book. Trying to find something to distract him, she reached inside her desk drawer and pulled out a manga. "Here, read this and leave me to my work." She threw it to him over her shoulder.

"Ehh..." Inuyasha stared at the cover. "What's this?"

"It's a manga," Kagome replied, tapping her pencil impatiently as she read the math problem again. "You'll like it. There are samurai and people killing people and stuff like that." She waved a hand in the air as if to wave off his confusion. She engulfed herself in the math problem once again.

Twenty minutes later, Kagome had finished her assignment and put it away with an exhaustive, yet satisfying sigh. One assignment down, at least twenty more to go. She was reaching for her English text when her mother called her from downstairs.

"Kagome?"

"Coming!" She put the book down and toddled out of her room, Inuyasha following her like the proverbial puppy. "Aren't you going to finish the manga?" She frowned and asked him.

"Finished it," he replied flatly.

"Oh," Kagome started down the stairs. "That was fast."

"Keh."

"Kagome," her mother spoke distractedly, looking over a letter. She met her daughter at the bottom of the stairs. "You have mail." She handed her the letter.

"Really? Who's it from?"

"It doesn't say," her mother replied, lips drawn tight and concerned. "It only has your name on the front, like the one you showed me."

"Like the other what?" Inuyasha asked, confused.

Kagome felt her stomach drop and she tore open the envelope with shaky hands. Her heart went into over-haul, and she firmly told herself to get a grip.

A simple note card lay inside. Taking a deep breath, she pulled it out.

'_Does he always come in through your window?'_

Moaning, she dropped the letter and fell into a crouch, holding her stomach. A simple sentence had made her feel as if someone punched her in the gut. There was no more confusion. There were no other possibilities.

Kagome now had a stalker.

She groaned, feeling this morning's breakfast try and make it's way back up again. Pressing one hand to her mouth, she whimpered.

Inuyasha was at her side in an instant. "Kagome? What's wrong? Kagome?!"

"Oh kami," he heard Kagome's mother mutter worriedly as she read the paper that Kagome had dropped.

Frustrated, he let out a loud growl. "Would somebody tell me what the hell is going on here?" He snapped angrily as he threw a comforting arm around Kagome's shoulders, trying to calm her down.

He pat her back awkwardly, and when he was sure that her mother wasn't looking, he leaned in closer to nuzzle the top of her head with his chin. Unfortunately, the meaning went unheeded, as Kagome had no way of knowing that he was trying to let her know he'd protect her in youkai terms. The demon inside mourned, then pressed him to drop a kiss on the top of her head.

_That _she understood and she gave him a grateful smile despite the tears that were about to fall down her cheeks.

"What's wrong?" He tried to ask her again.

Kagome's mother wordlessly handed him the note and they both sat back and waited for his reaction. Kagome watched him a little worriedly, because she wasn't sure how he was going to react. If something like this happened back in Senkoju Jidai, Inuyasha would have no qualms about killing the stalker. Hell, he's done it many times before when youkai threatened to harm her.

But this wasn't the feudal ages. She had tried to explain to Inuyasha before how killing or hurting wasn't allowed in this time, but she had a feeling he was only half-listening every time it was brought up over the campfire conversations.

She watched worriedly as his face took on a reddish hue, and she extended a shaky hand up to his back in attempts to calm him down.

"I-," he began, then choked on the words. "I can't-."

Kagome began rubbing his back, wishing she knew how to calm him down in youkai body language. It seemed that he responded instinctively to that kind of communication rather than human interaction, according to Myouga.

Kagome took a deep breath, planning on telling him that they needed to go down to the police station, and that they would take care of it.

Inuyasha dropped his head forward and muttered an embarrassed admission, one that nearly made Kagome fall over comically despite the tense atmosphere.

"I can't read."

* * *

A/N: Okay, I know this chapter sucks, but please don't be mad! It's a filler chapter! The next one will have all of the great action and thrill and romance.

Please don't hate me! (hangs head in shame) Keep reviewing, please!


	9. Chapter nine

Disclaimer: And now we shall all bow to the great and powerful Takahashi. She owns Inuyasha, not me. (That's me hanging from the dungeon walls, by the way....)

A/N: Wow.... (speechless) I'm so glad you guys liked that last chapter! Thanks for reviewing and telling me so! I was so worried about it, lol. I'm hoping some more action will come into play in the next few chapters....but unfortunately for me, the characters seem to move all on their own when I'm writing.

Obi-Wan Kenobi: (wanders onto the set, looking confused and wondering why he was in Feudal Japan)

(pushes him off the set) Wrong fandom, damn you! Get back into that cardboard box!

Ahem....moving forward...

THANK YOU SMG1984 FOR POINTING OUT A MISTAKE. It's fixed now!

* * *

The car ride home from the police station was much like the one on the way there: silent and extremely uncomfortable. You could cut through the tension with a paperclip, she thought wryly. And most of it was coming from an irritated hanyou in the back of the car. Kagome sighed from her position in the front seat and went back to staring out the front window.

Minutes after Inuyasha's confession on the staircase, Kagome felt herself sputtering and trying to form a logical sentence. Realizing that she was only making herself look like an idiot, she took a deep breath and opened her mouth to ask him to repeat what he had just said.

Kagome's mother slapped a hand over her mouth, effectively cutting her daughter off before she embarrassed the poor boy even further. It was obviously an effort on his behalf to release information of that nature. She herself wasn't surprised by his admission; there were plenty of undereducated people in the feudal era.

Once Kagome was silenced, Kagome's mother told Inuyasha in a calm voice what the note said. This, of course, quickly turned Inuyasha's embarrassment into a furious anger. He was not pleased that somebody had been close enough to see him climb through her window. And not only that, but he wasn't able to smell them because of the damn rain. He was also furious over the fact that the 'fucking creep' was watching Kagome, and he let everyone in the vicinity know with a loud, indignant voice.

Kagome had blushed over the protectiveness that seemed to radiate from Inuyasha's body and swamped over her body like a security blanket. Rubbing his arm to try and calm him down, she and her mother quickly explained how they needed to take the note to the police station and let them know so that they could help them catch the stalker.

"_Keh!" Inuyasha had sniffed indignantly. "I'll catch the bastard."_

"_You don't even have a scent trail!" Kagome protested._

"_I do now." A chilling look passed over his face and Kagome shivered. He was holding the note between his claws, sniffing lightly at the paper._

"_And?" Kagome pressed a few minutes later when he didn't say anything._

_An odd look crossed his face. "I don't get it," he muttered, almost to himself._

"_What?" Both she and her mother asked in unison._

"_It smells...like you," Inuyasha turned his confused gaze to her eyes. "There's no other scent on here."_

Kagome shivered lightly in her seat, brought back to the present by the light tapping on her shoulder. "Yes?" She turned to face Inuyasha, sitting in the back seat and looking slightly odd with her battered, old baseball cap on his head and a pair of Jii-chan's sandals on his feet.

"You gonna apologize now?" Inuyasha raised an eyebrow.

"No," Kagome huffed and turned her face forward. Inuyasha had gotten a little...upset once he realized that the police weren't going to do anything but patrol the area a couple times during the day. Kagome had been forced to whisper a 'sit' under her breath as he leapt up from his chair, making it look like he had simply fallen.

"_I'm very sorry, Miss Higurashi," the officer shrugged. "But the station is swamped with pressing, life-threatening matters. We will, however, ensure that one of our officers checks in a few times a day to make sure everything is alright."_

"_What?! That's ALL?" Inuyasha leapt up, and then went crashing into the floor after a well-timed 'sit' from Kagome._

"_There's no way of finding out who sent the letter?" Kagome's mother asked, ignoring the rather loud curses coming from the subdued hanyou._

_The officer shook his head. "Until these little notes turn into threats, there's really nothing more we can do for you." He smiled in sympathy. "I'm really sorry about this, I'd like to help you more, but...."_

"_No, it's alright," her mother smiled back, albeit forced. "We understand you have more pressing cases. We'll give you a call if they turn out to be more serious than they are now."_

_The officer nodded, relieved that they understood how busy the station was. "It might just be a prank," he told them. "We get a lot of those coming in, nowadays."_

"_Exactly like this?" Kagome asked hurriedly. Maybe somebody was just having some harmless fun with her. Maybe it was just some prankster at school._

"_Well," the officer shrugged. "I guess."_

'He didn't answer the question,' Kagome thought bitterly as her mother pulled into a parking space and turned off the engine. "Eh?" Kagome looked around. "Where are we?"

"Clothing store," her mother replied. "It's quite obvious that _some_body is watching you two, right?" At her daughter's nod, she continued. "It would be best if they didn't find out about the well, or that Inuyasha is a hanyou. And if Inuyasha is, in fact, going to be staying here for a couple of days, he'll need some normal looking clothes."

"It's not like they can use the fucking well," Inuyasha grumbled, upset that the shard search was being postponed for a few days longer.

"No, but how would you like it if they damaged, or even destroyed it?"

Inuyasha sat back and contemplated the older woman's words. He'd be stuck here in the future. Or worse, what if they were separated when the well was destroyed?

_Oh, _fuck _no, _the youkai spoke up from his dormant sleep. _The well can shut the both Kagome and I in the past, but _nothing's _gonna take me apart from my mate,_ it snarled.

Nodding in agreement, he opened the car door and stepped outside. Wordlessly, he followed Kagome and her mother into a large, ominous looking building. Stepping through the glass door that Kagome had magically opened, he turned and stared in wonder as it shut behind them. Mentally reminding himself to ask her how she managed that later, he quickly caught up to the two.

Passing a certain department, Kagome nearly laughed as the hanyou threw a sleeve in front of his nose. "What the fuck is that?" He sneezed.

"Perfume," She replied, taking a hold of his other hand and quickly leading him past it before his sensitive nose would cause him to pass out.

"Excuse me," Kagome's mother asked an employee who wandered past. "Where would I find the men's clothing?"

The employee gave Inuyasha a strange look once she got a glance at his clothes. "Up the stairs and to the left," she pointed to an escalator.

"Thank you," her mother smiled and led the way over to them.

"Okay," Kagome tried to think of a way to explain the escalator to Inuyasha. "Don't freak out. Think of it as a moving staircase."

"Think of what as a moving staircase?" Inuyasha asked, trying to wipe his watery eyes. The fragrance department still had an effect on him, it seemed.

"This," Kagome pointed to the escalator in front of her. "Act normal," she told him and tugged him forward. They both stepped onto the first step, and Inuyasha stared in wonder as he was magically lifted up to the second floor.

"How'd it do that?" he asked once they had stepped off.

"Erm....," Kagome frowned. "It....hey look! Socks!" She pointed rather piteously toward the display, trying to distract him from the question. It was too long an answer, and Kagome didn't feel like answering. He gave her a strange look before turning away, sniffing around to see where her mother wandered off to.

"Inuyasha!" She called out to him over from where she was in jeans. "Come over here, you need to try these on."

Quickly giving him the run-down on dressing rooms and how the clothes were put on, Kagome and her mother picked out various articles of clothing while he tried them on and came out for inspection every once in a while.

Satisfied with the fit, they purchased two pairs of jeans, a couple of plain t-shirts, and one sweater. Her mother also threw in a package of boxers while quickly explaining modern undergarments to him. He gave her a confused look, then shrugged, indifferent.

Inuyasha had flat out refused to try on the shoes, and they didn't press him, knowing already how hard it was to get him into the sandals. It would have to be good enough for now.

"There," Kagome's mother beamed once they had left the store. "Now with that out of the way we can go home for a nice dinner."

Inuyasha, nearly blinded by the smile, nodded and continued walking to the car. Opening the car door, he was about to slide in the backseat when a high-pitched, ear-splitting noise rang in his ears, causing him to fall back onto the concrete, grabbing his covered ears. He mashed the hat down further on his head, trying to block out the loud noise. The screech hurt his head so bad his eyes were starting to water.

"Car alarm," Kagome noted casually as a car four spaces away began wailing. Looking down to the writhing hanyou, she worriedly fell to his side, grabbing his shoulders. "Inuyasha? Inuyasha! Are you alright?" She asked frantically.

"The noise must be killing his ears," her mother noted from behind her as she looked around, making sure nobody was watching them. "Get him in the car, it'll lessen the noise."

Kagome nodded, then tugged on his shoulders to let him know she wanted him to stand with her. Grunting under the weight of the hanyou, she half-guided, half-shoved him towards the door and helped him climb into the backseat. Frantic to shut off the noise, she squeezed in next to him and slammed the door shut.

Her mother entered the driver's side and shut the door quickly after her. "Better?" She turned to face the hanyou and threw their bags on the seat behind her.

Inuyasha sighed, relieved, when the noise went down several levels, his ears no longer rang. Nodding, he quickly noticed Kagome crushed between his thigh and the door. Lifting his hands from his head he lifted her with ease, ignoring the startled yelp she emitted, and placed her next to him, in the middle of the seat. He could protect her better this way. With the bags blocking one side, and Inuyasha on the other, Kagome was perfectly safe in the middle.

His youkai side of him was satisfied with the situation now that it was under better control, and he nodded to Kagome's mother. "Let's go back."

Nodding in agreement, she started the car and exited the parking lot.

Inuyasha leaned back against the seat, closing his eyes. Now that they were in the car, he could relax his guard. Sighing, he resigned himself to the fact that he would be staying at the Higurashi shrine for a while. Before he left the village, he told Miroku and Sango that he was leaving to bring her back. Now he would have to find a chance to slip inside the well and let them know what was happening. He'd have to do it before nighttime, he decided, not wanting to leave Kagome alone past nightfall.

"Are your ears alright?" a quiet voice came from beside him.

"They're ringing a little," he admitted with a shrug. "But they're fine."

"Ca-can I?" Kagome stuttered in a whisper so that her mother couldn't hear them. Cracking his eyes open, he saw her motion to his ears and make a quick, rubbing gesture.

"Keh!" He spat to cover his embarrassment. "It won't help bitch."

He saw her nod and sit back in her seat, slightly disappointed. Guilt started nagging at him, tearing a small hole in his resistance.

Sniffing at the change in her scent, he cursed himself for making her upset. "Would you....when we get home?" He whispered in a low voice.

Shivering at the heat those words produced, Kagome suddenly felt like he was asking for something personal, something intimate. "Do you want me to?" She licked her lips, anxious.

Inuyasha picked up on the arousal in her scent and had to forcibly keep his body-and his hands- where they belonged. The demon inside him wanted nothing more than to make his claim on the girl, marking her as his forever. It wanted Kagome as a true mate, in every sense.

He decided it was best not to listen to his demon side....for the time being that was. Kagome was his, no questions asked. But now wasn't the time for taking mates, not with danger hounding afore mentioned mate. It was best to first remove the threat, or, in the demon's sense, rival male. Then they would both be free to so as they wished.

Against all inhibitions, he nodded to her. "I'd like that," he told her in a whisper, molten eyes sliding over her facial features, drinking in the sight of her.

Kagome smiled and settled back into her seat. "Alright."

* * *

"You're whimpering again," Kagome giggled, staring down at the hanyou, who had his head resting in her lap as she rubbed his ears. He was sprawled across her bed, lazy and content for the moment.

His new jeans and black t-shirt were stunning on him, Kagome decided. She loved how it showed off his form so well. At first, he looked slightly out of place in his new clothes, but after Kagome brushed his hair back into a low ponytail, he seemed to just....fit. He looked so.. modern.

"Shut it, bitch," Inuyasha grumbled without a lot of bite into it. He pushed his ear harder against her hand. "Keep rubbing."

"Yes, master," She droned, complying.

"Ohh, I like the sound of that," Inuyasha grinned.

"Siiiiiii-," Kagome broke off, laughing at the scared face below her. "You should have seen your face!"

"Idiot!" He snapped. "The spell would have sent me crashing down into your legs, and could have hurt your ankles!"

"Oh," Kagome blinked, having an airhead moment. "I never thought of that."

Growling, Inuyasha sat up. "You need to think about these things a little more," he replied, standing up and walking over to her window. Even though it was pitch black out, he could still see everything below as if it were daytime.

"See anybody?" Kagome asked, curling her legs up to her chest and hugging them.

"No," Inuyasha snapped. "I wish they would fucking show their faces; I'm itching for a fight," he cracked his knuckles.

Kagome smiled and shook her head. "Again, you're hopeless."

The doorbell rang, effectively cutting off Inuyasha's next retort. "I've got it!" Kagome jumped off her bed and ran lightly down the stairs.

"Idiot!" Inuyasha ran hurriedly after her. "I'm getting it," he yelled. "_You're _getting behind me," he shoved her back once he had reached the door.

Cracking his knuckles and putting on his best scowl, he slid open the door. A pale young boy stood before him, staring at the angry scowl blankly.

"Taka!?" Kagome gasped from behind Inuyasha. "What are you doing here?" Kagome asked hurriedly, clutching onto the back of Inuyasha's shirt for support. Creepy Taka was the last thing she needed right now.

Recognizing the name, Inuyasha immediately started growling. "What the hell do you want?" He bit out, trying to intimidate the boy into leaving.

Taka raised an eyebrow at Inuyasha's tone, but otherwise gave no indication that he was feeling any intimidation. "I came by to drop off notes for Kagome," he pulled out a folder from his bag. "Seeing as how you've been absent quite a lot recently, I thought you might appreciate it," he spoke in a smooth, calculating tone.

Finding nothing creepy with the gesture, Kagome still felt rather reluctant to accept the folder. "Thank you," She answered in a polite tone. Before she could reach out and grab the folder, Inuyasha had ripped it out of Taka's grasp and was sniffing it for any danger.

"Err....," Kagome forced a smile. "You done looking it over, now?" She asked Inuyasha, not even bothering to give Taka an explanation for the strange behavior.

"Keh!" Inuyasha slapped the folder into Kagome's hand and turned to face Taka. "There, she has her notes. Now leave."

"I believe it is up to me whether I stay or leave," Taka turned his cool gaze to Inuyasha.

Inuyasha growled, furious that the weak little human would dare try and stand up against him in front of Kagome.

"I trust you are feeling well, Kagome?" Taka turned to Kagome, his tone an eerie false concern.

"I'm....still not well," Kagome nervously answered, clutching onto Inuyasha's sleeve and preparing to say the word in case he leapt forward to claw his way through Taka.

"I hope I shall see you soon," Taka nodded his head and turned on his heel, leaving the shrine.

"Don't bet on it!" Inuyasha snarled, slamming the door shut.

Kagome pat his arm. "You alright?"

"Hell no! That little fucker just tried to show me up!" He snapped. "I'm following him," he reached to open the door.

Normally, Kagome would sit him into the ground, but for some reason, she didn't. She merely nodded. "Don't get caught," she warned him. "And don't hurt him," she glared.

Inuyasha growled. "Why the hell not?!"

"Because it's illegal here!" Kagome shouted. "Just find out where he lives, or what he's doing."

Inuyasha contemplated something for a moment. "If these 'police' guys get more evidence....," he asked, frowning. "Then does that mean they'll kill him?"

"No!" Kagome sighed, exasperated. "They'll take him away, not kill him."

Inuyasha nodded. It would have to do if killing the bastard would upset Kagome. "I'll get that evidence." Heh....he didn't promise not to hurt the bastard if he was pulling anything.

"Be careful," Kagome warned again.

"Keh!" Inuyasha shrugged before silently leaving the house.

* * *

A/N: Hey guys! Sorry I didn't have this up earlier...I had three classes today. (still unwinding with a plate of cookies from Sakura-Maylo-G) Thanks for the cookies! How did you know I love chocolate chip?

Whew....university is draining, especially when I'm running on 5 hours of sleep. LOL.

REVIEW and I will continue to update daily, as I have been for the past while.

(passes out ice cream bars in thanks to the readers and reviewers) THANK YOU! YOU MAKE MY DAY! : )


	10. Chapter ten

Disclaimer: Inuyasha's not mine....though I do dream about it sometimes.....

A/N: Well here's chapter 10! Thank you ALL for your wonderful reviews! I'm sorry I wasn't able to get this up yesterday, but university is starting to crack down and I've been sick due to stress. But here it is! As promised...chapter 10!

(passes out store bought cookies) What? You really think I had time to bake them myself?!

* * *

It took all of Inuyasha's self-control not to leap from the branch he was situated on and beat Taka bloody. This sneaking around was definitely not his style. Digging his claws into the bark, he bent his knees and prepared himself for yet another jump. He had been following the idiot for a long while now. Where the hell was he going?

Releasing his grip on the bark, he jumped and executed another silent leap into the next tree. The fact that the entire side of the path – or 'sidewalk' as Kagome put it – was lined with trees made following the bastard a hell of a whole lot easier.

The new jeans that he had been given were making it a pain in the ass, though. Longing for something looser, he winced as the material restricted him a bit as he crouched low on the branch. The coarse fabric was loosening a touch, but would never reach the flexibility that he had in his fire-rat robe.

Narrowing his eyes at the unaware human, Inuyasha sat back and watched as he entered a building, using a key to get in. Cursing over the fact that he would not be able to reach the closing door in time, Inuyasha leapt to the ground and looked up at the building.

It wasn't very high, he noticed. Kagome had told him that how high a building was depended on how many stories there were, and each one usually had one window. Looking up, he saw three windows going up the side of the building, and two going across the side closest to him.

Quickly finding cover in some brush, he lifted his head and breathed in deeply, trying to catch onto the bastard's scent. Sifting through about a million scents was not the easiest thing to do, so luckily for Inuyasha, he just happened to be on the right side of the building when a light went on in the top corner window.

Smirking, he casually leapt up to the second balcony before making the final leap to one above it. Quickly hiding out of view from the large window, he crouched under it, cracking his knuckles and staring at the door that was next to it.

Now if only the bastard would walk out onto the balcony....

But after a few minutes, Inuyasha realized he would have no such luck tonight. Growling to himself, he slowly stood and peered inside the window.

Much to his surprise, he found the inside to be rather bare. A single table sat inside what looked like a miniature version of the kitchen that was in Kagome's house. There were two other doorways, and Inuyasha figured that one of them was an entrance, so the other must be a bedroom. Sweeping his gaze around the room, he couldn't find anything to suggest that he was the one stalking Kagome.

Furious over the lack of 'evidence', he didn't notice Taka walk into the main room from the bedroom. Quickly crouching back down again before Taka could see anything, he once again prepared himself to ambush the human if he dared step out on the balcony.

Moments later, he noticed the light was turned off and a door open and shut.

'Good,' he thought to himself. 'Now I can search for that 'evidence'.' Smirking, he walked over to the door and crouched near the lock, trying to figure out how to work the damn thing.

'Do you even know what 'evidence' is?' A very Kagome-sounding thought entered his mind.

Pissed that his own criticisms were starting to sound like Kagome, he growled. 'Shut up. I'll know it when I see it.'

Finally having enough of the lock, he moved over to the window and grinned when he found it was open. 'Moron,' he snickered to himself as he slid it open and slithered his way inside.

Coughing at the stench of the boy, he covered his nose with his hand and began ripping open drawers. Finding nothing but cutlery and chopsticks, he slammed them shut again and stormed over to the bedroom.

Widening his eyes at the amount of books and paper, he snarled and punched the wall with his fist. More reading.

Stomping over to the books that lay strewn on the desk, he found some of them similar looking to the ones that Kagome had. Figuring they were school books, he slammed them shut and threw them over his shoulder, proclaiming them useless.

A few papers were neatly folded in the corner and he picked them up, sniffing each one. When he got to the last one, he froze. It was true he couldn't read, however, a few things stuck in his mind, and one of those string of characters was stamped to the page, near the top. He had seen this before, while Kagome was doing homework.

Sure, he couldn't read....but he could sure as hell recognize Kagome's name when he saw it.

* * *

Kagome sat on the edge of her bed, her fingers digging into the covers. She convinced herself she was perfectly trusting of Inuyasha, but despite that, she was still anxious he might get into trouble somehow. Not to mention he had left an hour and a half ago, and it had been dark outside before he left. It was getting rather late.

Standing, she sighed and walked over to the window, planning on shutting the drapes until he got back. Ever since the night she found she was being watched, she had become adamant about keeping all the house drapes closed and her mother agreed it was best. Reaching for the fabric, she jumped back as the window opened and Inuyasha leapt through.

"Hey," she greeted, already looking over his body for any sign of a fight. "How did it go?"

"Kagome, this is your name, right?" Inuyasha thrust a piece of paper in her face, one claw tapping the top corner of the paper.

"Yes," Kagome frowned. "What's th-," She stopped and stared at the paper. "That's my information from the school!" She exclaimed, ripping the paper out of Inuyasha's hands and staring at it in horror. "Where the hell did you get this?"

"Taka," Inuyasha said simply, turning around to shut the window and close the curtains. He quickly told her what had happened from the time he left the house until leaving Taka's place.

"He's living in an apartment by himself?" Kagome's face contorted into puzzlement. "It's not unheard of, but....well, maybe his parents own the building," she mused, trying to make sense of it all.

"Why does he have this?" Inuyasha pressed, leaning closer to her face and gesturing to the paper.

"I don't know!" Kagome exclaimed. "This information is supposed to be confidential and locked away in the head office at school!"

Inuyasha growled. "Bastard probably stole it."

"It's very likely, seeing as how I doubt some teacher just handed it to him!" Kagome retorted, slamming the paper down on the desk.

"Is this evidence enough?" Inuyasha asked, tapping his finger against the paper.

"It'll probably get him in trouble with the school, but it's not enough to get him taken away," Kagome explained with a sigh. "We still don't know if he's the one stalking me."

"Fuck," Inuyasha spat, turning on his heel and pacing the confines of the room. "What now?"

Kagome shrugged, worried. "If a student can get into my personal files...." She trailed off. "Oh god, anybody else could." She moaned and leaned over. "No, I don't want to think about this. This is too much," surprising even herself, she felt her eyes well up with tears. "Why me?" She asked Inuyasha, voice wavering slightly.

Aggravated by the sight of a hurting mate, the youkai pushed him to leap forward and engulf the girl in a tight, protective hug. Nuzzling the side of her face, he tried to pull her closer, wanting to cover every inch of her fragile body.

"Isn't my life filled with enough danger?" She cried into his shoulder, pressing herself against him. "Isn't it enough that I deal with youkai on a daily basis? Why a stalker? Why now? Why _me?_" She ended in an enraged shout.

"You're never in danger," he told her firmly, giving her a little shake. "I don't know why you were pulled through the well in the first place, but I can sure as hell tell you this," he pulled her away slightly so he could grasp her shoulders and look her in the eye. "You were meant to be dragged down that well. It happened for a reason."

"How do you figure?" Kagome whispered, startled by the intensity in his eyes.

"You were meant to free me so that I can protect you. Whether it's human or youkai, I am _never _going to allow them to hurt you, you're _mine_," He finished with a growl.

"E-," Kagome's eyes widened. "Wh-," she stuttered, silenced by Inuyasha's fingers as he laid them across her lips.

A slight flush settled across his features, and he turned his head down to face the floor, hiding his face from her view. Kami, did he just say what he thought he said? Out loud?

_Finally,_ the youkai smirked.

'Just shut up for a minute!' He shouted in his mind. 'Fuck. What now?'

_Claim her, _the youkai replied as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

'Are you out of your mind?!' He shouted to himself, realizing on some level that it wasn't healthy to be arguing with your own self.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome's soft and hesitant voice floated up to him.

Mustering courage, he curled his hands into defiant fists and looked up, preparing to deny the statement was ever said.

Soft lips on his cheek cut off any thoughts he had. Stunned, he could only stand there as Kagome gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. She leaned back, blushing, and turned her gaze to the floor.

"Thanks," she whispered, embarrassed.

Finally finding his voice, he coughed. "For what?"

"For protecting me," she replied shyly. "And for not pulling back when I did that." She forced a nervous giggle.

Swallowing, he licked his lips, staring at her endearing blush. "Why would I pull back?" He asked in a low tone that sent shivers down Kagome's spine.

"I," she glanced up at him before returning her gaze to the floor. "I don't know." She shrugged. Looking up, she tensed a moment before blurting out her next question. "Whatdidyoumeanmine?" She spoke all at once.

Inuyasha's ears drooped a little. "I don't know what you're talking about, bitch" he glanced about the room, indifferent.

"Sit."

"Aaghh!" Inuyasha picked his head off of the floor to glare at her. "What the _fuck _was that for?!"

"Tell me," Kagome asked desperately.

Ears drooped back, he swallowed. "In....youkai terms," he started out slowly, trying to think of an explanation she could understand. "Because I protect you and because my scent is the only male scent surrounding you, it means you're mine." There. 'Not bad,' he praised himself.

"But what does that mean?" Kagome pressed.

"That you're....," Inuyasha swallowed, and shook his head. Why was he being so hesitant? He was going to have to explain it sooner or later. He picked himself off the floor and stood up. "The scent mark on you is an intentional claim. When any other male youkai smells it, they'll know that it means that soon, or in the near future you'll be my mate."

Inuyasha stared, waiting for a reaction. The one he got was not what he expected. For how long could one person stand so perfectly still without blinking? "Kagome?" He poked her cheek. "Kagome?"

Unable to process all of the events throughout the night, she shook her head in denial. "Ohhh, It's stress. This isn't real," she muttered, holding her head in her hands.

"Eh?" Inuyasha asked.

"Sit."

"Aahh!" Inuyasha grunted, falling onto his futon.

"Goodnight," Kagome climbed into bed and turned out the light, snuggling into the covers and waiting for the day to be over so her life could get back to normal.

"Kagome?" Inuyash struggled against the spell. "Kagome, did you hear me?" How dare she ignore him after what he just said?

"Go to sleep," she ordered him.

"No!" He shoved against the spell, and the moment it wore off, he stood next to the bed, shaking her lightly. "Answer me, damn you! Say something!" He snarled.

He'd thought about this moment. About the moment when Naraku was dead, the Shikon no Tama was purified....but more importantly, when he asked Kagome to stay with him. Forever.

This was _not _how he'd imagined it. She was supposed to be _happy _damnit! Ecstatic! She was supposed to throw her arms around him and tell him she loved him, god _damnit_!

A small half-snarl, half whine escaped his lips before he could stop them. Horrified, he took a step back. So it was true. He was just a worthless hanyou after all. Nobody wanted him. It was all true.

But....he thought Kagome had been different. Hell, she agreed to take lessons from Myouga to better understand him. Why was she giving him the shoulder now?

Another sound escaped his throat, and he could feel his youkai side taking over. But it wasn't the angry, bloodthirsty demon that he was used to. This one mourned. It mourned the rejection from its mate.

Burying his face into her neck, he nuzzled the side of it. It needed comfort. It needed to be accepted back again.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, swallowing. What was he doing now? "What's going on?"

Finding a sense of control, Inuyasha was able to push back the youkai and once again regain control over his body. Shifting slightly, Inuyasha leaned forward to sneak a lick under her chin. Burying his face back into her shoulder once more, he inhaled her scent one more time before making a decision.

He accepted the rejection, and landed in a seating position next to the bed with a huff. Mate or not, he was going to continue to protect her, no matter what. After all....she was the tama detector.

_Fuck that, you asshole, _the youkai spat. _Quit trying to kid yourself. We both want to change Kagome's mind. _

'Keh,' he huffed back.

His ears flipped back when he heard the shifting of sheets, and it took all he possessed not to turn and look at her as he felt her drop down next to him. Taking in deep breaths, he held himself still, his face betraying no emotion. Like hell he was going to let her see how much she affected him. Ignorant bitch.

Kagome bit her lip and stared at his face. She was still in a state of shock, but on some level, she knew that he was serious about the whole 'intent claim' situation. She wanted to cry when she finally realized what he was saying. He wanted her for a mate.

This whole time....it wasn't Kikyo holding him back from deciding what he wanted. It was Naraku. He had his mind made up the entire time, but didn't want to say anything because of the quest. She knew on some level that if Naraku knew what going on between them, he could use it to his own benefit and tear them apart.

'Good going, Kagome,' she berated herself. 'Look at the mess you made just because you didn't want to deal with it. Did you ever once think about Inuyasha's feelings? How about every damn time you run home after a fight?'

Nodding and wincing at the voice in her head, she closed her eyes. It was true. They never resolved anything. After a fight, she always ran home and ignored the situation. Thinking back, she couldn't think of a time when they really actually took a step back and tried to calm down after being at each other's throats.

She needed to fix this.

Realizing wryly that the once pointless lesson Myouga taught her when she was apart from the others would in fact come in handy, she leaned forward and nuzzled the underside of his chin. Waiting a few moments and finding that he wasn't going to respond to a simple apology, she gave an equivalent to a whimper and turned until she was seated in front of him.

Steeling herself, and blushing furiously, she leaned forward and licked the underside of his chin. Leaning back, she tilted her head to the ceiling, waiting for acceptance.

Inuyasha mentally blinked, and felt his heard thud in his chest. The bitch was asking _him _for acceptance back? And in youkai terms, no less. Opening his eyes, he noted with male youkai pride that she was baring her throat to him, an act of submission.

Growling seductively, he leaned forward and bit lightly the soft skin on the side of her neck before smoothing over the skin with a lap of his tongue.

Shivering, Kagome was relieved that he accepted her apology, and tried to lean back, but Inuyasha had moved down her neck, kissing and nipping the skin so sweetly that she couldn't find her breath.

Reaching forward, he grabbed her hips and dragged her closer, seating her in his lap as he continued nibbling on the side of her neck. "Where did you learn that?" He whispered against the side of her neck.

Groaning at the heat of his breath, she couldn't seem to find her voice.

"Let me guess," He smirked and nuzzled her shoulder. "Lessons from the flea?"

"Uhhnggg...." Kagome was horrified to hear the sound exit her mouth.

Inuyasha laughed. "My mate," he purred into her neck. "Mine."

"Oh god," Kagome threw her arms around his neck. "I couldn't tell if you were serious or not," she admitted with an embarrassed laugh.

"Very serious," he pulled her tighter to him, hugging her one last time before standing and placing her on her bed. "But now isn't the time," he reluctantly admitted. "After everything is safe," he promised.

"You mean here or in the past?" she joked.

"Both," he stepped back from the bed.

Kagome blinked, unsure suddenly. "Are you really Inuyasha?"

Cocking his head, he frowned at her. "Why?" He asked, suspicious.

"You're acting so....not like your usual self," Kagome replied, half chuckling nervously.

"Wench," he growled. "Get some sleep," he ordered, falling back on his futon.

Kagome laughed. "There's the Inuyasha I know and love."

'There it is,' he smiled to himself. "Keh!" He replied in his usual, gruff manner.

"Goodnight Inuyasha."

"Go to sleep, Kagome."

* * *

A/N: Woooww...I hope he wasn't too out of character, there. (winces) Please don't hate me! (shrieks and falls under covers) I have a feeling this chapter was terrible. Oh....(clutched stomach) Please tell me I did okay.

(grabs a plate of cookies sent to her from reviewers) (picks up a book titled 'increase your self-esteem' and begins to read)

Inuyasha: HEY! That's where my book went!

Eh? But you can't read!

Inuyasha: It comes with a tape.

OoooOoOOOOooo.... (pulls out tape and stares at it with wonder)

PLEASE REVIEW!


	11. Chapter eleven

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. He belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. (sobbing) I can't believe I just said that!

A/N: O-kay! Chapter 11! Wow....this story is going to be a long one. The characters just go wherever they want, I tell you!

Sesshoumaru: I want to go to Disneyland next.

But you're not even in this story yet!

Sesshoumaru: You will take me to Disneyland, bitch.

Rin: But Sesshoumaru-sama, Rin wants to go to Six Flags.

Sesshoumaru: (eyes glaring and claws dripping poison) You will take us to Six Flags!

(whimper) Help meeeee!

* * *

Kagome held a firm grip on the door handle to her room, determined not to let go until both she and Inuyasha had their story straightened out. She was close to sitting him until he complied, but biting her tongue, she stood her ground and tried to reason with him.

"So we're just friends," She clarified to him once more.

"Don't you dare forget the intent claim, bitch!" Inuyasha snarled. "I'm not about to let it go without a fight!"

"Of course not," Kagome sighed and prayed for patience. On one side, she was absolutely thrilled at his words, but on the other she knew her mother would take it the wrong way at this point in time. "But while we're around my mother, we are just friends," she whispered furiously, trying to get him to bring the noise level down. Heaven forbid her mother was standing on the other side of the door.

"Why can't we tell her?" Inuyasha frowned, upset that she wanted to hide the nature of their relationship. Was she ashamed of him?

"Because in my time, I'm too young for this kind of stuff!" Kagome replied, getting annoyed that he wasn't listening to her explanation.

He growled low in his throat and huffed. "Fine, have it your way bitch!" Much to his horror, it came out sounding more hurt than he intended.

Taken slightly aback at his tone, she took a step forward and stroked his arm. "Hey, I'm not saying I don't want this. All I'm saying is that we should wait to tell my mother," she assured him, leaning forward to nuzzle his shoulder.

Sighing, he leaned into her head. "You're catching onto the signals way too quickly."

"And this is a bad thing?" She frowned, leaning back so she could see him.

"No," he snorted. "It just calms me down when I don't want to."

Kagome beamed. "So I am getting better?"

He shrugged, and to any outsider's viewpoint, he might look indifferent, but both he and Kagome knew that he was secretly proud of her progress.

"That was a comforting gesture, right?" She asked, not _entirely_ sure what she just did.

"You mean you did it without knowing?" Inuyasha jutted his head back slightly, startled. Only those with youkai blood would learn these things by instict, not humans.

"Well," she laughed nervously. "You did it last night to me, and it helped calm me down, so I figured it would do the same for you."

Inuyasha huffed, then nodded. "You got it right this time, but don't do anymore unless you know for sure what it means!" He poked her shoulder, slightly annoyed.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," she put a finger to her chin, teasingly. "I might accidentally come on to Kouga if I'm not careful."

Snarling, Inuyasha grabbed onto her shoulders and shook her. "Don't you dare even _think _about that! I'm not letting the mangy wolf anywhere near you!"

"Mou, Inuyasha," she chuckled, touched at his jealousy. "I was only kidding. I don't even really like Kouga."

Inuyasha felt his eyebrow twitch. "Don't even _really _like?" He repeated in an acid tone.

"Okay, I don't like him at all," Kagome quickly amended. "Feel better?"

He gave a quiet 'whuf' noise and glared at her.

"Alright, I don't know what that means," Kagome shook her head in confusion.

"It means I'm not pleased with you right now," Inuyasha bit out.

Kagome nuzzled the underside of his chin and gave it a quick lick. "I love you." The admission came easier than she expected, and she smiled.

He closed his eyes. "Better."

"And you're sooo much stronger than that wimpy wolf," Kagome laughed, having fun stroking his ego and watching him puff his chest out.

"Even better," He smirked, nuzzling the side of her neck.

"And the next time he comes around I'll tell him that I've been claimed by a very possessive inu hanyou who doesn't like me hanging around with wolves," Kagome moaned as he lightly bit the side of her neck, willing to say almost anything to make him continue.

"Fantastic," He smiled against the side of her neck.

"Why'd you stop?" Kagome leaned into his shoulder, rubbing her cheek against his t-shirt.

"I told you, we should wait until it's safe," he had to firmly pull himself away from her before they did anything that might not be a good idea to do with Kagome's mother downstairs.

But kami, he wanted to.

"You look like a puppy who just lost his bone," Kagome teased.

Huffing, he grabbed a hold of her shoulders and practically shoved her out the bedroom door. "Let's go, I'm hungry bitch."

Giggling softly, she padded lightly down the stairs. "Alright, we'll eat breakfast and then I have to go do some homework. I'm so far behind I don't even remember the basics," she moaned.

"Keh!" Inuyasha sniffed indignantly. "That's because more important stuff came up."

A sudden thought occurred to Kagome and she gasped in delight. "I've got an idea!" She turned to face Inuyasha excitedly as they reached the bottom of the stairs.

"What?" he asked warily.

"You teach me more youkai body language signals, and I'll teach you the basics of reading!" She jumped up on her toes. "It'll be like school, only at home and with a much more interesting topic!" _Not to mention a hotter teacher_, she added to herself silently.

Inuyasha blinked. "You-you'll teach me to read?"

"Of course!" Kagome smiled. "I'm sure it'll take a while, but if you're willing, I'll help you."

Swallowing, Inuyasha turned his face to the floor to hide his awed expression. Nobody had ever offered to teach a worthless hanyou how to read. Not even Kikyo. When he told her he couldn't read, she laughed and told him that was to be expected. Not many knew how in the feudal times.

The fact that Kagome told him she'd help him learn to read as if it were the easiest and most natural thing to do held him speechless. Silently nodding, he nudged her hand until she held it, and promised to teach her all he knew about inu youkai traditions and communication.

Smiling, Kagome held his hand and led him into the kitchen, where breakfast lay on the table. Looking around, Kagome could not find her mother, but saw a plate set up for her in her usual spot. Figuring she was throwing her apron in the laundry, she gestured for Inuyasha to sit and begin eating.

Halfway through the meal, her mother's voice came from the other room. "Kagome? Could you go upstairs and get me your laundry?"

"Now?" Kagome blinked. "But what about breakfast?" She glanced over at her mother's set place.

"Kagome," her mother's tone took on an icy bite. "Get the laundry and bring it to me please."

Swallowing, she nodded. "Yes mama," she whispered, obediently standing up and walking out of the kitchen.

'That was odd,' she thought to herself. 'Mama rarely uses that tone, and never when I ask a question.'

Taking the steps two at a time, she toddled on into her bedroom and gathered up the laundry from the floor. Grunting, she hefted the large pile over to the hamper by her closet. Heaving all the clothes into it, she sighed and stepped back before realizing that her pj's also needed a wash.

Shrugging out of them, she added them to the large pile and went in search of clothes before anyone could walk in on her. Finding a pair of jeans in her closet, she decided to be comfortable today and threw them on, as well as a t-shirt.

Armed with the week's laundry, she carried the huge hamper downstairs to her mother in the laundry room.

"Thank you, dear," her mother's voice came from behind the half-closed closet door inside the laundry room. The radio was on and she could barely hear her mother's voice.

"Er," Kagome looked around the laundry room. "Where's the rest of the laundry? I thought that's what you were doing?" She looked over to the washing machine and saw that it was empty. Next to it the folding table was devoid of freshly dried and crisply folded clothes.

"Mama?" She asked again, dropping the basket on the floor. "What's going on?"

"Nothing dear, I'm just getting started," her mother replied. "You may leave the laundry and I'll get to it."

Kagome licked her lips. "Alright." She replied slowly and dropped the basket on the floor where she stood. Scooting out of the room, she shrugged her shoulders at her mother's odd behavior.

Unbeknownst to Kagome, a figure half-turned to watch her leave, confident eyes watching her progress with a smirk playing upon its lips.

* * *

"That was odd," Kagome frowned as she entered the kitchen.

"What was?" Inuyasha asked in between bites of ramen. Kagome rolled her eyes as a piece of ramen fell from his lips and into his lap.

"My mother, she's acting...odd," Kagome sat down hesitantly and began eating once again. "I wonder if she's sick."

Inuyasha lifted his head and sniffed at the air. "No, she's fine," he took another bite. "Smells normal to me."

Kagome laughed. "That's handy."

"Especially when a certain someone claims 'sick' so she can go running home," Inuyasha narrowed his eyes at her.

"Hey!" Kagome protested. "I only did that once!"

"Twice," Inuyasha snorted, gulping down the last of his ramen.

"Okay, twice," Kagome rolled her eyes. "Big deal."

"Shut up," Inuyasha huffed, clearing away his ramen cups and throwing them out in the garbage.

"You know, I've been thinking...." Kagome trailed off, a confused look on her face.

"That's a first," Inuyasha retorted, dodging a clump of rice that was thrown at him.

"You know how the other day you said you could only smell my scent on the note?" Kagome pressed on.

"Yeah, what of it?" Inuyasha slumped into the chair across from her.

"How come you couldn't smell my mother?" She frowned. "She picked it up too. And you for that matter," she added.

Inuyasha sighed. "Moron. That's not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?" Kagome snapped her chopsticks in irritation.

"The scent on the paper was old. It was yours, but it smelled like it was a day old," Inuyasha explained.

Kagome's eyes widened. "Why didn't you tell me this sooner? How could this be possible?" Her mind reeled.

Inuyasha shrugged. "I don't know. I'm waiting until another note comes so I can figure it out."

"You what?!" Kagome shrieked. "Those notes give me little heart attacks and you're waiting around for the next one like they're mail reminders from the dentist?!"

"What's a dentist?" Inuyasha blinked. "And I'm not sure about that scent," he argued. "I need the next one to be sure."

"I thought you said each person had a different scent," Kagome narrowed her eyes.

"They do," Inuyasha nodded. "Which is why it's weird that the note smelled like you."

"So....you think I wrote it to myself?!" Kagome panicked, thinking he didn't believe her.

"Of course not!" He roared. "What the fuck do you think I am, an idiot?!"

"Then what's going on?" Kagome shouted back, confused and scared.

"I don't know! Maybe somebody stole some of your paper and covered up their own scent!" Inuyasha retorted.

"Oh," Kagome sat back in her seat. "I suppose that's possible." She shook her head. "Wait a minute, I haven't found any missing paper! That can't be right."

"Idiot! I said 'maybe'! There are hundreds of other possibilities!" Inuyasha yelled, exasperated.

Settling the ends of her chopsticks on her lips, she sat back and thought about those other possibilities.

"I....can't think of anything," she reluctantly admitted.

"Keh. Me either. That's why I'm waiting for the next one," he sat back in his chair and crossed his arms.

"Kagome?" Her mother walked into the room, a bag in hand. "There you are! I was worried you'd wake up and wonder where I was."

"Eh?" Both Kagome and Inuyasha turned to stare at her comically. "You were just doing laundry. You asked for my clothes just a few minutes ago," Kagome frowned. Had her mother finally lost it?

Her mother frowned. "No," she replied slowly, looking to both Inuyasha and Kagome as if they were crazy. "I was getting some more eggs so we could have fried eggs with breakfast. I left the house before the two of you even woke up."

Kagome frowned in confusion and turned to Inuyasha, but the boy was too busy sniffing the air to look her way.

"Old scent," he breathed, finally catching on. He hadn't noticed it before because he didn't have the real scent to compare it to.

"What?" Kagome asked, more confused than ever.

"Your mother's old scent is coming from the laundry room," Inuyasha leapt up and grabbed Tetsusaiga from its place on the counter.

"Old scent?" Kagome stood up and followed him. "What do you mean?"

"Old, like the one on the note," he growled and pushed her back into the kitchen. "Both of you stay here!" he shouted and ran towards the scent trail.

Pushing open the laundry room door, he unsheathed the Tetsusaiga and held it out in front of him. Cautiously looking around the room, he examined every little detail and sniffed again, though it did no good. The scent was already old, so he couldn't tell if it had left or not.

Glancing down at the basket that usually held Kagome's old clothes, he found it to be empty and cursed under his breath. "Great," he muttered to himself and put his sword away once he realized the room was completely empty and he didn't smell the old scent anywhere else in the house. "Just fucking great."

"Inuyasha?" Kagome's voice came from behind him and he sniffed quickly, calming down when he realized hers was a recent scent. "What?" He asked gruffly, turning around. "I thought I told you to wait in the kitchen!" He snapped, angry that she had not listened to him.

"Wh-where are my clothes?" Kagome stared wide-eyed at the basket. She looked up to the washing machine and saw it was empty also.

"They're gone," he replied simply. "But at least we know why the note smelled like you."

"What was it?" She asked in a shaky voice. "The voice sounded exactly like Mama's," she shuddered. "And how could our scents be used?"

"I don't know," Inuyasha sighed. "I couldn't even smell it, that's what really pisses me off."

"Do you think it's a youkai?" Kagome asked in a small voice, pressing a hand up to her lips.

"Fuck Kagome," Inuyasha exploded. "I just said I couldn't fucking smell it!"

"I know," Kagome nodded her head. "I just thought-maybe...."

Furious at himself for snapping at her, he yanked her closer to him and awkwardly threw an arm around her shoulders in what he hoped was a comforting manner.

"If it sounded exactly like your mother," Inuyasha mused. "Then it has to be a youkai."

"No," Kagome shook her head, subconsciously leaning into his warmth. "Here in this time....there are devices that can mimic a person's voice to a certain extent. Plus the radio was on in the closet, so I could barely hear the voice."

"But even if it was human," Inuyasha pressed on. "Why the hell couldn't I smell them? Why the hell could I only smell your mother's scent?" He growled low in his throat, upset that his nose was rendered useless against this opponent. He felt like it was the new moon all over again.

Kagome shook her head. "I don't know." She shivered. "Why the hell did they take my clothes? That's a little too creepy to even try and ponder about."

"Then don't," Inuyasha snorted. "Buy new ones."

"Easy for you to say," Kagome grumbled. "Now I have to go bra shopping all over again."

"What?"

"Nothing," Kagome sighed and stepped back, looking up at him. "What now?"

He shook his head. "I don't know."

"Now," Kagome's mother came up behind them, starling them both. A quick sniff told Inuyasha that this was the real mother. "We go back to the police station. Our home has been obviously broken into, seeing as how I locked the door before I left." She grimaced. "This is taking a turn for the worst."

* * *

(passes out tater-tots) Thanks for reading. PLEASE REVIEW and I shall get the next chapter up as soon as I know that people are still reading! : )

(hands self esteem book to wabibito, who claimed to need it) Here you go, Inuyasha's done with it. His ego is big enough, I think.

Inuyasha: Keh! You're trying to use underhanded means of language to lower the value of my own self-worth.

O.o ......do you have any cookies for me?

Inuyasha: No. Sit! (points to author who is lying on the floor) Sttaayyy! BE HUMBLE!

I am! I am! Thank you readers! (bows low and climbs back into cage)


	12. Chapter twelve

Disclaimer: There once was a hanyou named Inuyasha who belonged to a girl named FireTi- ACK! (gets hit over the head by Rumiko) Alright damnit! They belong to you! I get the picture, so STOP HITTING ME!

A/N: Hey guys! Sorry this chapter took longer than usual. (2 days, I know! Man you guys are spoiled, eh? My favorite fanfiction hasn't been updated in nearly a year!)

ANYway....so here's chapter 12, thanks so much for the reviews! You guys are the best! (passes out breadsticks) C'mon, it's different! Try it!

No? Aw, ok....(pulls out a plate of cookies from a closet full of cookie boxes) Ok, ok, here's your cookies.

Sesshoumaru: (walks by in a Six Flags t-shirt and grabs a cookie)

Heeeyyy! Those are for the readers!

Sesshoumaru: Bite me.

O.o

* * *

"Damnit Inuyasha! Put them back on!"

"_Beg_ me to!"

Kagome paused in her struggle, sitting back astride his legs. "Well doesn't this bring back fond memories?" She asked over her shoulder.

"Yeah, except that time you weren't trying to crush my feet into torture devices!" Inuyasha snarled, trying to move her off his thighs by pushing at her back. Of course, every time she pushed back her backside rubbed against his crotch and he doubled his efforts so as not to embarrass himself.

_Yeah, you keep trying to convince yourself of that, _the youkai smirked.

'Shut up! Now is not the time to enjoy this!' He but out mentally before emitting a moan as she pushed back once more, obviously having trouble getting the shoe on his right foot.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome looked over her shoulder as she doubled her efforts with the damn shoe. "You okay?"

"Fuck no, bitch!" He sat up quickly before he lost all self control and took her right there on the living room floor. Panting, he could not help but stare hungrily at the bare nape of her neck. He struggled not to mar the pale white skin with a slight nibble, or hell....why not mark her now?

'NO!' he shouted mentally, squeezing his eyes shut and regaining control once more. What the hell was the matter with him this morning? Normally he wasn't this....well, horny was one way of putting it.

Kagome's legs shifted and she leaned forward slightly. A pleasing aroma met with his ears and he groaned mentally, finding his answer. Great. The bitch was in heat. No wonder he was subconsciously all over her this morning.

"Ah hah!" Kagome cried, quickly knotting the laces of the shoe before he could kick it off again. Heaving a sigh of relief, and totally oblivious to the heated hanyou behind her, she leaned back against hi slightly for a moments rest. "There's one down....," she trailed off.

Leaning forward, she struggled to reach the sock that was carelessly thrown away by Inuyasha early this morning when he first refused to wear the shoes. Her fingertips had barely grazed the tip of the sock when the doorbell rang, causing her to jump.

"I'll get it," Kagome's mother breezed into the room. "It's Officer Shinji."

"What?!" Kagome screeched, causing Inuyasha to wince and lower his ears. Goddamn the bitch for being so loud.

"I thought we were meeting him at the police station!" Kagome continued shouting at a slightly lower level that Inuyasha silently appreciated.

"He called back after I talked to him and said he needed to come by and gather evidence anyway, so....," her mother trailed off with a dainty shrug.

"You mean I've been struggling to get Inuyasha in shoes for the past 45 minutes-and all of it was for nothing?!" Kagome stared incredulously at her mother as a small bead of sweat fell from her forehead to her cheek.

Inuyasha watched its progress with heated eyes, captivated.

"Well, it certainly seemed to keep you both occupied," her mother smiled and headed for the front door, oblivious to her daughter's anger. "I thought it best to leave you two alone."

Kagome choked and nearly sobbed. Her mother was cruel.

Leaning forward, Inuyasha caught the rolling bead with his tongue and nuzzled her throat. "I told you I didn't need 'em," he smirked against her sweaty skin.

Kagome's eyebrow twitched and she scooted out of his lap. "Osuwari!"

"Aaaghh!"

Quickly tying on a cloth over his ears, she leaned back with a gloating smirk. "Arrgh," she corrected him.

"Eh?" He asked, slightly dazed from his position on the floor.

"You look like a pirate," she snickered.

Anger seethed his way through him, fueled by the inner youkai. How dare she make him submit to her? She should be the one submitting! Snarling, he told the youkai to stuff it, as there was no way of getting the subduing spell off for the duration of her heat cycle. Besides, he raged against himself. There would be no submitting until Naraku was long dead.

Sitting up angry and frustrated, he took out his fury out on the shoe, ripping both it and the sock off. "Bitch," he muttered under his breath.

Smiling patronizingly, she pat the top of his head, oblivious to his internal battle.

"Kagome?" Her mother re-entered the room, detective in tow. It was the same officer that they went to when the notes started coming in. She didn't notice the first time how cute he was, she mused and looked over his light hair and pleasant features. Not to mention how young he was, he looked no older than twenty three.

Sniffing lightly and catching onto the fluctuation in her scent, he growled low in his throat so only Kagome would hear and reached up to her neck, pinching the skin there. Scruffing was usually only used as a punishment to pups, but Inuyasha had no choice. He very well couldn't bite her lightly on the shoulder with her mother standing right there, now could he?

Wincing at the light pinch just below her hair line, she cleared her throat and kicked him lightly in the shin, trying to dislodge his hand without anyone noticing something odd. She made a mental note to ask him what the hell he was doing later, not sure if he was telling her something in inu youkai, or just pinching her for the hell of it.

'It better be something in inu youkai,' Kagome swore mentally. She kicked him a little bit harder, and he finally let go once he was sure her scent for the other male had gone down considerably.

"This is Officer Shinji, remember?" She turned to Shinji. "I'm sure you remember Kagome and her boyfriend Inuyasha from the last time we visited you," Kagome's mother continued introductions, oblivious to her daughter's plight.

Blushing brightly over the term 'boyfriend', Kagome stood up and almost reached out to shake his hand western-style, but the pinching on the back of her neck was back again as soon as Inuyasha could scramble up behind her.

'Ah,' she thought to herself. 'That's it. He doesn't want me to get near Officer Shinji.' She frowned. 'But why?'

Realizing that the officer was staring at her, she flushed and quickly have a shallow bow, as much as she could without her neck free. "Hello," she gave him a forced smile.

Shinji gave a small nod of his head. "Hello again Miss Higurashi, Inuyasha," he gave another small nod to the hanyou behind Kagome.

At Kagome's prompt- an elbow in the ribs- he nodded back stiffly. As long as he stood at least ten feet away from Kagome, the officer was all right. But one step closer to her....Inuyasha cracked his knuckles.

"Can I get you something to drink, Officer?" Her mother jumped right into the role of hostess.

"No, thank you," Officer Shinji shook his head politely, smiling. "I'm fine. I would, however, like to see the smashed lock you found."

Nodding, Kagome's mother led the way into the kitchen. "You saw the bare spot on the door where it used to be, correct?"

At the Officer's nod, she continued on.

"I didn't notice it when I first arrived because I came in the back door," she explained as they entered the kitchen, Kagome and Inuyasha hanging back by the kitchen doorway, exactly ten feet away from the officer.

"I rarely use the front door after grocery shopping, you see, because I need to drop frozen items in the larger freezer, which is closer to the back of the house." She went on to explain.

The officer nodded, already inspecting the smashed lock that was placed on the kitchen counter. "So you dropped off the frozen groceries and proceeded to where first?"

"The kitchen," her mother replied. "The reason why I left was because I needed eggs to finish cooking breakfast. When I arrived, Kagome and Inuyasha were already eating the rest of the breakfast I had set out."

At this, the officer's eyebrows shot up. "Your daughter's boyfriend was here early in the morning?"

Inuyasha, who stood behind Kagome in the doorway of the kitchen, growled. "Yeah? What of it?" He wasn't sure what the term 'boyfriend' meant, but he could sure as hell figure out that the officer was judging Kagome and her mother for allowing him to stay with them overnight. What the hell did he think he was going to do? Hurt them?

Kagome stepped on his foot and sent him a glare over her shoulder.

"He sleeps over occasionally," her mother covered up her slip-up. "We set him up a futon in the extra bedroom."

'Ah, that was it,' Inuyasha smirked. The officer didn't want him sleeping with Kagome? Well fuck that. He leaned in closer to Kagome and wrapped a possessive arm around her belly, a giving the officer a clear sign in inu youkai to 'back off' as loudly as he could.

"I see," the officer replied, giving the cuddling pair a frown and turning back to the lock. Reaching into his belt, he pulled out a small digital camera and a pair of tweezers. Taking a few pictures from different angles by moving the lock with the tweezers, he gestured for Ms. Higurashi to continue her story.

"When I arrived," she went on. "I asked if they had wondered where I had gotten to. They both gave me confused looks and told me that I had asked them for the laundry just minutes prior."

Officer Shinji paused from moving around the lock. "What do you mean?" He turned to ask Kagome.

Which, of course, pissed off the hanyou behind her, thinking that the officer was ignoring him.

"I heard my mother's voice coming from the laundry room," Kagome explained, ignoring the tightening arms around her waist. As pleasant as it might be right now, she really needed to tell the officer what happened.

"She asked me for my laundry, so I went to get it and then carried it into the laundry room." She took a deep breath, trying to explain all the details she could remember. "I thought it was odd how I didn't see any other laundry in there. The voice was coming from inside the closet, but the radio in there was on, so I could barely hear it."

"And what happened next?" The officer had taken out a pad of paper long ago and was writing down notes.

"The voice that sounded a lot like my mother's told me to put down my laundry and she would get to it next, so I left the basket and walked back to the kitchen," she shrugged. "The voice sounded a lot like my mother, so I didn't think much of it."

Frustrated, Officer Shinji rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Well, we're looking at either gender here."

"But how can a male make his voice sound like mine?" Kagome's mother asked, eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"There are computer programs that can do it," he answered honestly. "But it needs a sample of the voice."

"So they would have to have been watching me as well," Kagome's mother said in a quiet voice. "To get the sample."

Kagome shivered at the thought of her entire family getting involved in this. Inuyasha tried to nuzzle the top of her head, but she kept moving her head from the officer, to the lock, and then back to her mother. Annoyed, he leaned forward and bit her lightly on the shoulder.

She half-turned and gave him a comforting smile, not sure what the bite was for. She did get the shock of her life, however, when Inuyasha leaned forward and licked the side of her cheek in what he had hoped was a comforting manner. Blushing brightly, Kagome turned her head back to the conversation in front of her.

Officer Shinji was nodding to her mother. "Yes, but I don't understand why they went through all this trouble just to scare. It almost doesn't see worth it to go to the trouble to getting the voice sample."

"My clothes were missing when we realized it wasn't my mother in the laundry room," Kagome blurted out.

"Your....clothes were missing?" The officer frowned and turned to face Kagome once again.

"Yes," Kagome nodded her head, realizing the whole situation sounded rather odd.

"Alright," he took a deep breath. "Tying in what was said before with the suspicious notes you've been getting, I've come to a conclusion."

"What's that?" Kagome stepped forward, anxious.

"You have a stalker."

Kagome tripped and would have met the floor intimately with her face if Inuyasha had not caught her around her waist.

"No shit!" Inuyasha shouted, pissed as all hell. Is this all the police can do? Watch and make obvious observations? Fuck it all, _he _was going to protect Kagome and her family. Not these fucking wimps.

"Now, now," Kagome's mother held out a hand in an age-old peace sign. "Calm down." She told Inuyasha, mentally promising him a large bowl of ramen if he kept his temper under control.

"I'll have a few more officers come by and check the place for prints," Officer Shinji went on to say. "But first," he turned to Ms. Higurashi. "Can anyone confirm your story about going to get groceries?"

"She-She's a _suspect_?!" Kagome choked over her own words. Were they kidding? Her mother couldn't hurt a flea...., well, maybe if the flea was Myouga-annoying little twerp that he was. But even then she'd be apologizing left and right, handing over large quantities of food to make up for it!

"Relax, Kagome. It's expected," her mother smiled. "Yes, you can contact the grocer at the corner store northeast of here. He'll be able to tell you what times I entered and left his store. I'm sure he even has security tapes of it."

Nodding, the officer put away his pad of paper into his pocket. "I'll check in on it. The other officers will come by later today. In the meantime, I ask that you do not leave the house."

Nodding in agreement, Ms. Higurashi followed him to the door, frowning in confusion as Inuyasha and Kagome moved as one, scooting ten feet away from Officer Shinji. 'Oh, poor dears,' she thought to herself. 'They can't get used to the smell of his cologne. I'll admit, he does see to put a little too much on, a little less would be appreciated....' She coughed lightly.

She looked over to see Inuyasha wrinkling his nose in disgust as the officer walked by and nodded in sympathy. His poor nose must be in overload.

Inuyasha sneezed, not sure if it was caused by the officer's disgusting scent or if somebody was talking shit about him.

Probably both.

"Wouldn't it be best if we left the city for a while?" Kagome's mother asked Shinji once they had reached the front door.

"I'd get a new lock put on quickly," the officer remarked absently, staring at the bare spot on the door. He looked up and saw that she was expecting an answer. "You could," he nodded reluctantly. "But there are ways of tracking you. Your stalker might follow you to wherever you go."

Ms. Higurashi nodded. "I understand. We'll stay here until my son and father come back from their trips, in any case."

Shinji nodded. "I'll be in touch," he turned on his heel and strode off the porch toward the shrine steps.

Inuyasha huffed, glad the annoying fucker was gone. He released Kagome's neck, brushing aside her hair and licking the reddened skin, attempting to soothe it.

The 'sit' died on Kagome's lips and she swallowed. Now what was he doing?

"Kagome dear?" Ms. Higurashi walked into the room, oblivious to the way Kagome and Inuyasha scooted three feet apart at the sound of her voice. "I have a headache, I think I'm going to lie down until the other officer's arrive. Could you wake me when they do?"

"Of course mama," Kagome nodded as her mother passed by her and climbed the stairs to her bedroom.

Once she was out of sight, Kagome felt claws wrap themselves around her arm. "Lessons, now."

She nodded in empathy, still confused by this morning's actions.

"I'll go get some ramen," she shook off his arm. "We'll talk in my bedroom."

Inuyasha nodded. "I'll come with you."

"You don't have to," she smiled. "I know you want four cups."

"Keh!" He snorted. "Five!"

Kagome frowned. "Four."

"Five!"

"Four and a half."

"Five!"

"Osuwari!"

"Arrghhh!"

* * *

A/N: Wow, I finally got it up! Huzzah! Now while I go to work, you must all review, or chapter 13 (with the inu youkai/reading lessons, horray!) will take longer than expected. (evil laugh)

Naraku: You are truly evil!

Thank you!


	13. Chapter thirteen

Disclaimer: Inuyasha does not belong to the author. Nor does he belong to anyone else. He is a HANYOU, damnit, and belongs to himself!

(walks in) Inuyasha? What are you doing writing my disclaimer?

Inuyasha: Keh! Fixing a few things....

A/N: Horray! Thank you for the wonderful reviews, they really made my day.

AIIII! (hides from masteroftheuniverse's tigers) call them back please! I update as often as humanly possible!

ANYways.......ahem......as I was saying-

Inuyasha: I have a bone to pick with you.

Interesting.

Inuyasha: How come you took my bastard of a brother to six flags, but not me?!

O.o He threatened to kill me.....

Inuyasha: Oh, is that how we get you to do things.....(cracks knuckles)

AAAAHHHHHH!!!!

* * *

"And that," Kagome stated proudly. "Is how you write your name."

Inuyasha stared, transfixed at the paper which held the symbols of his name. Kagome decided it was better to teach him with the traditional brush and ink rather than a modern pen so he could use his new skills in Sengoku Jidai.

Scraping the brush in ink once again, he lifted it over the paper and mimicked the symbols again and again until he had it perfect without having to look back to the original. Puffing his chest out proudly, he looked up at Kagome. "Is that right?"

"Yes," she giggled over his child-like enthusiasm. "Now, would you like to know why these symbols mean your name?" She asked him, already pulling out one of Souta's old lesson books from earlier grades.

At his nod, she began a long lecture about the sounds, and began matching the words in which he already knew, to the symbols on the page. She started out teaching him the numbers, and found much to Inuyasha's chagrin, that he did not know how to add or subtract either. So her reading lesson quickly turned into a math lesson, and she taught him the basics only. Once she was satisfied that he knew how to do simple addition and subtraction, she leaned back in her chair to see the clock.

"Alright, I think that's enough for now," she told him. "It's been two hours."

The police officers showed up just after Kagome and Inuyasha finished eating their ramen in her room. Luckily, her mother was already up and got the door, saving Kagome from interrupting their lessons. They took pictures and prints around the laundry room, though any idiot could tell it was a half-assed job, seeing as how they were finished in twenty minutes.

"Keh," Inuyasha smirked and subtracted ten from fourteen for the third time, just to prove that he could read and write the numbers on the page. Elation filled his spirit and he poked Kagome in the side. "My turn to teach now?"

"Yes," Kagome smiled and put away the ink and brush set. She also threw out the ramen cups in her trash bin before turning and facing him.

"Alright, but we do this my way," Inuyasha stood from the extra chair Kagome had pulled up to her desk. "We're gonna sit on the bed," he told her. "My ass is numb from that fucking 'folding' chair."

"Alright," she nodded and sat down next to him, crossing her legs and mirroring his body.

Inuyasha sighed. Great. Where the hell did he start?

"What was going on this morning with the pinching?" Kagome blurted out.

"It's called 'scruffing'," Inuyasha corrected. "It's generally used on pups as a form of punishment, or a way to show displeasure over their behavior."

Kagome blinked. "I'm a pup?"

"No!" Inuyasha snapped. "I was only scruffing you because it was the only way to get you to stop without biting you on the shoulder. That's what alpha males do to show displeasure to their mates or lesser males."

"Only way to get me to stop what?" Kagome asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Err, well...." Inuyasha faltered a bit. "You see, your cycle's scent right now....it means you're in heat."

Kagome blinked once, then twice. "I go into heat?"

"All females do," Inuyasha nodded. "Human males just can't smell it."

"_You _can smell it?!" Kagome reared up, furious that he didn't share this information with her earlier. Oh god, if he could smell her 'heat cycle', does that mean he could smell her period?

Inuyasha nodded, oblivious to Kagome's embarrassment. "I can smell your monthly cycle," he affirmed.

Kagome's entire face went from a light pink to an angry red. Misinterpreting the reason behind the color change, Inuyasha quickly tried to reassure her.

"It's nothing to be all embarrassed about," he huffed and turned his head to the side. "Every female has a cycle. Get over it already."

_Great way to make her less embarrassed, _the youkai smirked wryly.

'Shut up,' he retorted.

"You. Idiot!" Kagome shouted. "You think I'm embarrassed? I'm so ticked off that you didn't tell me that I can't see straight! I could have covered it up with perfume so you wouldn't have known!" She raged.

"Idiot!" He shouted back in her face so they were nose to nose. "It wouldn't have mattered! I could still smell it anyway!"

"But still!" Her rant was cut off by Inuyasha's fingers covering her lips.

"Do you want to continue or not?" He bit out, eyebrow twitching.

Huffing behind his hand, she reluctantly nodded.

"Alright," Inuyasha pulled back his hand, but not before he purposefully ran his fingers over her full bottom lip. "Inu youkai signals are pretty straightforward," he began the lesson once again. "Licking, nuzzling," he waved a hand. "They're all gestures of comfort and affection."

"What about biting?" Kagome asked.

"They show displeasure," Inuyasha crossed his arms in front of him, missing his haori sleeves already.

"But," Kagome frowned. "When we were in the kitchen and the officer was looking at the lock, you bit me, then licked my cheek." She shook her head, confused. "Were you angry, then sorry you were angry with me?"

"No," Inuyasha growled. "I was angry with you because you kept moving your fucking head. I was trying to calm you down, but you wouldn't stop moving. So I bit you to get you to stop, then licked you."

His matter-of-fact attitude really helped calm down Kagome's blush at his blunt words. "But how will I know why it is you were angry?"

"You'll catch on," Inuyasha replied. "It's not that hard."

"And if you get real angry, I lick you under the chin to show submission and bare my throat to affirm your leadership," Kagome nodded her head, remembering Myouga's lesson.

"Yes," Inuyasha nodded.

"But what I still don't get is why you scruffed me in front of Officer Shinji," Kagome narrowed her eyes. "I wasn't doing anything at the time."

"Keh!' Inuyasha growled. "You were thinking about that bastard."

"How the hell would you know? You just felt like pinching me, didn't you?" Kagome jabbed a finger at his chest.

"Your heat scent got stronger," He snarled. "You were thinking about fucking that guy!"

Kagome gasped. "I was _not_!" She screamed in his face.

"You were too!" He snarled back, nose to nose with her.

"Was not!"

"Was too!"

"_I was not!_"

"_Were too!"_

"_No-_Mphh?"

Kagome froze as Inuyasha's lips came crashing down on hers, effectively cutting off her protest. Claws came up to hold her face, and shifted to tangle themselves in her silky hair, pulling her forward.

Kagome groaned as his lips slid along hers, coaxing them into action. His tongue slid across her bottom lip, tasting. Groaning, he drew it into his mouth, sucking lightly before nibbling teasingly.

Kagome gasped and slid her hand up to his ears, rubbing them. Her tongue hesitantly tasted his lips, unsure.

Taking matters into his own hands, Inuyasha delved into her mouth, groaning as he slid his tongue along hers. He slid his hands down from her hair to slide along the outside of her breasts, his thumbs brushing along her hardened nipples through her shirt.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, her voice slightly dazed.

"Hnn?" He growled in response, eyes not leaving her creamy skin.

"Should we be doing this now?" Kagome swallowed, trying to calm her body down. It wasn't helping matters that she ached for more, her body humming alive with pleasure. "I mean, you just told me I was in heat. Doesn't that also mean I can get pregnant easily?"

Inuyasha growled. "Who said anything about mating?"

"Wha-?" Kagome frowned, looking up at him. "Then what are we doing?"

"Petting."

* * *

Panting, they laid there for a long while, kissing and licking at each other's necks, showing affection in inu youkai. Kagome reached up with a lazy hand to stroke his ears, giggling softly as he growled, content.

"I can't believe we just did that," Kagome admitted once she had regained control over her voice.

Growling, Inuyasha lacked the strength to muster up an indignant tone. "Why not?"

"I don't know," she whispered. "But it....feels right."

"Keh! That's because we're mates."

"I know, but....," Kagome trailed off. "In this time, girls my age don't get married, or mate." She told him.

"Back then you'd be married off long ago, with a few pups of your own by now," He muttered against her throat.

"It feels like we're moving too fast," Kagome closed her eyes, exhausted.

"We're not moving fast enough for my taste," Inuyasha growled. He shifted against her. "I want more."

Kagome's eyes flashed open, her thoughts more wide-ranged than before in her heated daze. "Oh god. What if my mother walked past the room?" She moaned in despair and threw her hands over her face.

"She didn't," Inuyasha scoffed. "Don't you think I'd smell her if she came near?"

"Thank god," Kagome relaxed once again. She turned to Inuyasha with a smile and leaned forward to kiss his cheek. "Thank you."

"For what?" He frowned, perplexed.

"For....er," Kagome trailed off, gesturing to their bodies.

"Keh!" Inuyasha forced a snort. She was thanking him? He should be thanking her, over and over for wanting a worthless hanyou to mate with. He still couldn't believe she wanted to become his mate.

Not that he gave her a choice, of course. She was his, no questions asked. But the fact that she wasn't protesting spoke volumes to him.

"Are we going to get back to the lesson?" Kagome chuckled.

Inuyasha smirked. "No, that was the end of lesson one."

"You mean....?" Kagome asked, wide eyed.

"Oh yes, we're going to be learning about mating next, Kagome," Inuyasha lapped at her lips. "Consider this a taste of what's to come."

"But," Kagome swallowed. "What happened to waiting until Naraku was dead?"

"I'm not going to claim you until he's dead," He told her. "But we can sure as hell explore each other in the meantime." He nipped at her collarbone.

"Kami...." Kagome sighed. "What kind of monster have I turned you into?"

"The insatiable kind," Inuyasha smirked gloatingly before giving her a smack on the rump. "Now get up and make me some ramen. I'm hungry."

"_Please_?" Kagome bit out, getting sick and tired of his lack of manners.

"Please what?" He frowned, confused.

Kagome sighed. Maybe she should teach him manners instead of reading. "Ask me, don't tell me."

Huffing, Inuyasha bit out his request. "Kagome, could you make me some ramen, _please_?"

"Yes," Kagome beamed and slid of the bed, quickly locating her jeans and sliding them on before unlocking the door. "Oh, Inuyasha?"

"What do you want now, wench?"

"I love you, you rude jerk."

"Keh! You're not half-bad, bitch."

* * *

For the rest of this Lemon, please proceed to my mediaminer account: http :/ / www. mediaminer. org / fanfic / src. php / u / FireTigerSoul

You'll need to take the spaces out, but if the link doesn't work, my pen name is the same over there as it is here, so you can probably search for it.

A LOT was cut out of this chapter, due to the rule here that nothing is above an R rating. If you wish to read the whole chapter, please follow the link, provided you are old enough to read it.

PLEASE REVIEW AND I SHALL MOVE ON TO CH 14!


	14. Chapter fourteen

Disclaimer: Inuyasha doesn't belong to me. He belongs to a rich Japanese woman to which the hanyou in question caters to her every whim.

Inuyasha: I do not!

Really? Then how did you come across that lifetime supply of ramen sitting so innocently behind you?

Inuyasha: I prefer not to answer that question....

A/N: Yay! Thanks so much for the reviews! I know a lot of you were saying that the link provided to the complete chapter 13 wasn't working properly. If you go to my bio (author page), you'll find the correct link there. Sorry for the confusion!

* * *

Kagome sighed in relief as she sank low into the warm water of the bath. Resting her arms against the side of the bath, she closed her eyes and let her head drop down onto her arms. Baths were a good thing.

They were a time to cleanse, a time to relax....

"Kagome!"

A time to hide away from irritable hanyous....

"What?" Kagome snapped to Inuyasha, who stood on the other side of the door. Could he not leave her alone for a good twenty minutes? A girl needs time to think things over once in a while. Especially after what happened that afternoon.

She groaned in embarrassment, sinking lower into the water. She still couldn't believe she and Inuyasha did....well, something close to _that_. A week ago, any thoughts of the dog demon returning her affections were practically unthinkable.

And now with a stalker dodging her every move, her family in danger, Inuyasha going into over-protective 'mate' mode....Kami, the last thing she expected was an intimate relationship.

"Just how long are you going to be?!" Inuyasha pounded once on the door.

"I'll come out when I'm good and pruned!" Kagome shouted back. "Go eat some ramen!"

"Keh!" Kagome could hear him huff, and knew he was crossing his arms in his usual manner. "I don't know why you need to soak all day," he muttered through the door.

"Because I like to," she replied. "Is it a problem?"

'Yes it's a fucking problem!' Inuyasha silently raged. 'You're completely wiping off my scent, bitch!'

A quick sniff after their activities earlier told him that her heat scent was slightly dormant for the time being, her body sated enough to calm down. Which was why he jumped her in the first place.

_Yeah right, _the youkai snickered. _You just wanted to jump her so she wouldn't even think about that other guy._

'Well, that too,' he nodded to himself.

_Fuck, why is she soaking off my scent?_

Inuyasha shrugged, pissed as all hell. During their activities, his scent marked her again, affirming their mated status. Any youkai would know that this means to clearly back off, but unfortunately for Inuyasha, the officer that Kagome was thinking about was human.

No matter.... his thought processes still ran in youkai terms, and the fact that she was soaking off his scent just made it seem like she was refusing him. Of course, there was no way of her knowing this because he hadn't taught it to her yet.

Growling, he turned away from the door and walked back into her room, greeted by the pleasant scent of their previous activities. Her heavy aroused scent still hung in the air and he felt himself harden in response, wanting her all over again.

Shaking himself, he walked over to the window and lifted it open, trying to air out the room. As much as he liked her scent, it was going to drive him crazy if it stayed there as a constant reminder of her heat.

The youkai in him still craved a true mating, to mark her and claim her as his forever, but his human side didn't want to complicate matters at the present time. It was best to remove any temptation from in front of him for the next few days until her body calmed down.

The air soon cleared up in the room, bringing in a nippy, autumn breeze to the small room and he heaved a deep breath, relieved.

After a few moments, another pleasing aroma greeted his nose. Sniffing light once again, he decided to follow it. Leaving the room, he quickly walked down the stairs and sniffed again to find its direction. It was coming from the kitchen, he realized, and walked in to find Ms. Higurashi making dinner.

"Oh, hello dear," She looked up to see him standing in the doorway before going back to chopping vegetables.

"Hi," Inuyasha greeted awkwardly. What exactly does one say to your mate's mother after you were just intimate with her daughter?

"Kagome's in the bath," he finally settled on stating the obvious.

She nodded, not looking up from her cutting. "I figured as much."

Pleased, Inuyasha nodded and walked over to the table, taking a seat and settling Tetsusaiga on the table in front of him.

"I hope you do intend to marry my daughter," Ms. Higurashi casually remarked as she finished chopping the last of the vegetables.

"Why?" Inuyasha asked suspiciously, narrowing his eyes.

"Well, after hearing the noises I did after passing by her room...." She trailed off, a teasing glint in her eye. "One can only assume what you were up to in there."

"Wh-We didn't-," Inuyasha choked, trying to come up with a logical sentence. "We were only-."

Wait a minute, she passed by the room and he didn't hear her coming? What the hell was the matter with him lately?

_You were paying attention to more pressing matters,_ the youkai casually remarked.

'Shut up!' he shouted mentally, all the while agreeing heartily.

Kagome's mother laughed over his fumble. "I'm not angry, Inuyasha. In fact, I'm very happy."

"You are?" Inuyasha's eyes widened. She didn't mind that her daughter was mating with a half-breed?

"Yes, I've known Kagome's feelings for you for a long time," she smiled. "I'm happy you return them."

"Keh!" Inuyasha spat, blushing all the while. "Who the hell said I like her? Maybe I just like rutting with her?"

'Ohhh, smooth, dog-boy,' a very Kagome-sounding thought appeared in his mind and he winced, lowering his ears.

"I can tell these things," Kagome's mother smiled. "I can tell you care about her very much just from the way you protect her and act around her."

"She's just a shard detector," Inuyasha mumbled, going back to his original denial.

"I think it's a lot more than that," She smiled knowingly. "In any case, I'm very happy to consider you family."

'Family, eh?' Inuyasha lowered his head. 'She wants me....to be part of her family? To be with Kagome?'

"Thank you," he mumbled in a low voice, touched.

Ms. Higurashi nodded and continued smiling. "Keep in mind, I want lots of grandchildren," she pointed a finger at him. "And if you could make them have cute little puppy ears like yours, I'll give you a life-time supply of ramen."

"Keh!" Inuyasha smirked. "Is that all I have to do?" he drooled at the thought of all that ramen.

She laughed. "You look hungry. This meal is for later, when my father and Souta come home." She leaned over and pulled out a cup of ramen from the cupboard. "But you could have this in the meantime."

"Only one?!" Inuyasha shouted, indignant.

"That's all you get for now. Dinner will come soon enough," She leaned over and turned on the stove, preparing to boil some water.

"Keh!" Inuyasha stood, not wanting to wait for the ramen. "I'm going to check on Kagome."

"Don't take too long," she replied distractedly. "Your ramen might get cold."

Strolling out of the kitchen, his senses were assaulted by an unfamiliar scent, and he growled instinctively, one hand immediately going to Tetsusaiga. He stood still for a moment, inhaling once again and took off running towards the front door, where the scent was originating. Sliding the door open with a slam, he crouched and took a careful look around the shrine.

There was nothing his eyes could see that was potentially dangerous, and he slowly stood up, loosening his grip on his sword. Stepping outside the door, his foot nearly slid out from beneath him as it came in contact with paper.

Growling, he picked up another white envelope, and nearly crushed it in his grip. Bringing it close to his nose, he inhaled the scent that lingered on the paper.

Flowers and soap.

Frowning, he sniffed again, confused. He had smelled this scent before, but where?

Sniffing again, he was angry to find that he could not smell an individual's scent on the paper. How the hell could a fucking human erase their own scent? He snarled and tore open the little envelope, yanking out the card inside and trying to read it.

Unfortunately, the one reading lesson Kagome gave him was not enough to allow him to read the note without trouble.

His ears perked as small footfalls came down the stairs inside, and Kagome's fresh scent came his way. Growling over the fact that he couldn't smell himself on her, he slammed shut the door and stomped over until he was towering over her on the bottom step.

"Read," He thrust the note in her face, causing her to jerk back.

"What is it?" She asked, startled.

"It's another note! I smelled something strange and found it lying on the porch!" He snarled. "Now read it!"

She frowned, looking from him to the blurry note a centimeter in front of her nose. "Damn it, Inuyasha! I can't read it when it's that close to me, back up!"

Leaning in to angrily nip at her earlobe, he reluctantly complied, moving off the bottom step with a huff and moving the note back slightly so she could read it.

"What's it say?" He snapped at her horrified expression.

"Oh god," she moaned, bringing a hand to her mouth.

"Enough of the dramatics!" He shouted. "What's it say?!"

"You'd be horrified too if you found out some creep was wearing your underwear!" Kagome screamed and thumped his chest with her fist.

Startled, Inuyasha raised his eyebrows. "What?!"

"The note!" She shouted, ripping it from his claws. "It says 'I have your clothes, they fit nicely'," she shuddered. "What kind of sick person is this?"

"Kagome? What's going on?" Her mother walked into the room, drying her hands with a towel.

Inuyasha wordlessly handed her the newest note and waited until she read it. "I've got a scent on it, but it's not _their _scent. It smells flowery and similar to soap."

"Maybe that's their scent?" Ms. Higurashi frowned, feeling physically ill at the note. What did her daughter ever do to deserve this?

"No," Inuyasha shook his head. "I've smelled it before, but I can't place it...." He trailed off, frowning. "Fuck!" He swore at himself. "Why can't I catch onto their scent?!" He raged again, furious at his unanswered question.

Kagome took the note from her mother's hands and held it up to her nose, sniffing lightly. Inuyasha watched her with a horrified fascination, wondering what the hell she was doing.

Frowning, Kagome turned it over and smelled the back. Pausing, she took the towel off her head, causing her wet hair to go cascading down her back. Lifting the towel to her face, she inhaled deeply.

"Fabric softener," she spoke suddenly, handing the note to her mother. "Doesn't it smell like fabric softener?"

Her mother took a delicate sniff and nodded. "It smells similar to it."

Inuyasha growled. "Why the hell can you two figure it out, but I can't?!"

"Because we know what fabric softener is," Kagome pointed out. Recognizing hurt pride when she saw it, she leaned in closer to him. "But if it wasn't for your excellent nose, we wouldn't have known about the note in the first place."

"Keh!" Inuyasha puffed out his chest. The bitch was finally starting to realize his genius, now was she?

Ms. Higurashi looked down at the note and shuddered. "What do we do now?" She asked herself.

"Mama," Kagome spoke up after a long pause. "I think you need to take Souta and jii-chan away from here. Go away and visit someplace far away."

Her mother was already shaking her head. "I can't leave you alone."

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted. "She's with me! She'll be fine."

"I know you'll protect her, but....," she looked up, her eyes unsure.

"Go," Inuyasha told her softly. "Take your family away from here until we send notice that it's alright to come back. I'll take care of the fucker," he cracked his knuckles.

"I'm so scared for you, Kagome," her mother protested, reaching out to hug her daughter. "I feel like I'm running away."

"Don't worry, mama," Kagome assured her. "I'll feel better knowing you're all safe. Inuyasha will help me get rid of this guy."

"Or girl," her mother shook her lightly. "Don't assume this person is male. By suspecting, you might find yourself closer to the actual stalker."

Kagome nodded. "Don't worry, we'll be fine. Stay with your sister and I'll call you daily to let you know what's going on."

"I don't know....,"

"Mama," Kagome shook her mother's shoulders. "We've dealt with worse situations in Sengoku Jidai."

"I know, and that scares me too."

"If you stay here, I can't protect all of you," Inuyasha sniffed. "Just go already."

Kagome's mother took one long look at both Kagome and Inuyasha before nodding. "Call everyday," she firmly told them.

Kagome nodded. "Watch over Souta and gramps for me, okay?"

"We'll be fine. It's you I'll be worried about," her mother frowned.

"Just pretend that I'm back in the feudal ages," Kagome forced a smile. "Then you won't worry so much."

Kagome's mother laughed. "I worry when you're there, too."

"What the fuck for? I'm with her!" Inuyasha bristled.

"I know you are. I worry about you too," Ms. Hirgurashi smiled at him.

"Keh!" He turned his head away. "Don't bother," he told her gruffly. "We're fine."

She nodded. "I'll start packing our suitcases and we'll leave after they arrive."

"No need to leave so soon," Inuyasha protested lightly. "What about dinner?"

Ms. Higurashi smiled. "We can wait until after dinner," she assented.

"Good," Inuyasha crossed his arms. "We're having ramen with dinner, right?"

Sighing, both women turned and walked into the kitchen, one to help finish making dinner and the other to turn off the boiling water.

"Hello? Ramen?" Inuyasha toddled after them.

* * *

Bwahahaha! Another evil little note! That's creepy. Who wants some freak trying on their clothes?

Inuyasha: hey, this bathrobe looks good on me.

That's it, more Inuyasha-torture in the next chapter!

Inuyasha: Fuck that, you stupid bitch! (takes off the bathrobe)

YAY! Now you must all review for chapter 15 to come up quickly. (In the next chapter, the stalker will strike again! This time in person! Dun dun dun....) REVIEW PLEASE!

(passes out croutons and cookies) Enjoy! : )


	15. Chapter fifteen

Disclaimer: Inuyasha isn't mine, sadly. I'm still saving up enough money to purchase him. (sighs and strings together a beaded collar)

A/N: Yay! Here is chapter 15! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE REVIEWS!

A lot of you are still telling me that you can't get through to chapter 13 on mediaminer. I said in the previous author's notes that if you go to my bio page here on fanfiction, you can find the link straight to it.

Horray for second reminders!

And now, getting on with the program.....(passes out cookies)

Holy shit! Sublimetrickster read my fic. O.o (stunned) Go forth and view her artwork. They're great. Have fun in Japan! (waves to sublimetrickster)

And also to ARTIMISMOON, another one of my favorites, for continuing to read my fic. (tears streaming down face) I have such cool reviewers.....

* * *

Inuyasha huffed and crossed his arms, more than slightly annoyed at how long this teary goodbye was taking. Couldn't the bitch just shove her mother in the car and be done with it? They had gotten everybody else in without a hitch, although the old geezer was complaining that he hadn't even had a day's rest in between trips.

Well, tough. Inuyasha had no sympathy for the old fart, especially after he slapped a useless ofuda to his forehead and chanted 'Demon be gone!' at the top of his lungs. Inuyasha's ears were still ringing, thanks to him.

"Don't worry mama," Kagome sighed. "I'll be fine."

_Bitch has patience._

Inuyasha nodded, in agreement for once with his youkai side.

_Good thing too. Who else would put up with your shitty courtship fumbles?_

Inuyasha snarled, causing both women to jump and stare at him, alarmed. Kagome's worried eyes scanned over his body, probably wondering why he was acting so strange. Snorting, he turned his back on the both of them, effectively escaping their curious gazes. Alright, so their relationship was a little faulty. Big deal. She already accepted him.

_She doesn't even know you're going to fucking provide for her! _The youkai snarled, and he felt himself growls back in response.

'I provide for her in Sengoku Jidai all the fucking time!' He recalled many a time when he hunted meat not just for Kagome on their travels, but for the kit and the rest of the group. If Kagome didn't know by now that he could provide for her, than she was just an ingrate and blind.

'Which she's not,' He proudly noted, recalling the thanks he always received in return, every single time.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome's voice called out to him.

Turning around, he watched as Ms. Higurashi climbed into the car and shut the door behind her. Souta gave him an enthusiastic wave through the back window and he snorted, holding up a hand in return. Startled by the loud noise the little car made when it started up, Inuyasha held his ears down. Did everything in this fucking time have to be so fucking loud?!

Holding his hand over his nose, he watched as the car sped away down the street, and he took a deep breath of relief when it was gone. Things here smelled horrible too. Kagome once told him it was 'fumes' he smelled from the odd contraptions. Merely nodding that time, he ignored the rest of her explanation and bided the time away thinking about beating up his brother.

Now, he kind of wished he had paid attention to the explanation, seeing as how he was going to be staying here for a while. It drove him absolutely nuts when he didn't understand something. It make him look stupid and ignorant in front of Kagome, and that was something both his human and youkai side could not stand for.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome called out again.

He finally looked down at her, startled by the weary look and the shadows that has settled under her once bright eyes. Already going into over-protective mode, he nudged at her back and gestured with his chin to the shrine steps. "You. Bed. Now." He said simply and she nodded, not bothering to argue.

'Keh. Probably too tired,' he thought to himself. Not that he blamed her or anything. A lot happened all in one day and it was nearly dark out. She must be exhausted after their afternoon 'lessons'.

Smirking and nodding with pride, a low rumble began in his chest, something akin to a possesive growl. Helping her up the steps, he had to all but shove her up the last one before deciding to take matters into his own hands.

Leaning down in front of her, he gestured for her to take hold of his shoulders and climb on his back. She complied, grateful, and he lifted her easily, placing his hands on the backs of her jean-clad thighs.

Wishing wistfully for her short skirt, he sighed and carried her into the house. Pausing by the door, he waited rather patiently until she had kicked off her shoes before continuing through the house and striding up the stairs, taking care not to jostle her too much in his ascent.

Stepping into her small room and crossing to the bed, he shoved the covers aside and bent to awkwardly dumped her in the bed. Wincing when she fell a little harder than he was hoping for, he lowered his ears. "Oops," he mumbled.

Kagome gave him a small smile, amused. "That's alright. Thanks for carrying me," she thanked him.

"Keh!" Inuyasha crossed his arms and stood, waiting for her to fall asleep.

She sat and stared at him for a few moments, waiting for him to leave. Realizing he wasn't going to move anytime soon, Kagome sighed. "Inuyasha? I need to get changed."

"So get changed already," he shrugged, uncaring.

"I'm not going to get undressed while you're watching," she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Then don't." He didn't understand why the hell she needed to change her clothes before she slept. It made no sense.

Kagome let out something akin to an angry growl and Inuyasha winced. Now _that _he understood. Turning away, he stood by the window, his back to her.

She quickly changed into her pj's, watching the figure by the window out of the corner of her eye. Half-hoping he would attempt to sneak a peek, she was thoroughly disappointed when he did not. Sighing, she climbed back into her bed. "Inuyasha? Finished." She called out softly.

He turned back to her, eyes roaming over the simple shirt and pants that she had changed into. Nodding, he walked over to her bed and plopped down next to it. "Go to sleep," he ordered.

"Night Inuyasha." She yawned, getting settled into the covers.

"Go to sleep, bitch," he told her again, keeping his voice deliberately soft.

"Ne, Inuyasha?"

He sighed. "What do you want?"

"I-," Kagome swallowed, licking her lips in apprehension. "I think one of us should go down the well and tell the others what's happening here. They're probably worried sick."

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted.

"I was thinking...." She went on. "If you go in the middle of the night, it'd be dark, right? Nobody would be able to see you."

"So?" He asked, not sure where she was going.

"So, after I fall asleep...." She replied, hesitantly. "Do you think you could sneak down there and tell them we're alright? I'm sure Shippo is really worried."

Inuyasha growled. "I'm not leaving you alone."

"But-," she protested.

"No Kagome!" He cut her off harshly. "I don't want to be stuck there without you. Either we go together or not at all!"

Shocked, Kagome leaned back into her pillows. If she didn't know any better, she could have sworn there was a note of desperation in that tone. Smiling, she leaned forward to give one of his ears a quick rub. "Alright," she said, cuddling her cheek into her pillow and closing her eyes. "Tomorrow night then," she suggested.

"Keh!" Inuyasha shrugged his shoulders in what she knew was agreement.

"Night Inuyasha," she mumbled, already falling asleep.

* * *

"Kaaagomeeee!"

Sango sighed as the little fox kit pressed himself further into her shoulder, needing comfort. She reached up and began rubbing his back in what she hoped was a comforting manner. If he didn't stop crying soon, her clothes were going to be soaked through, and she had just dried them from his last crying fit.

The little fox demon had been going on since yesterday when he realized that Kagome was later than usual, and Inuyasha had gone missing also. The hanyou was supposed to apologize and bring her back, but there had not been a sign of the both of them for quite some time. Sango herself was getting slightly worried.

"I'm sure she's fine, Shippo," Miroku assured him as he sat down on the other side of the fire. "She's with Inuyasha, after all."

"Th-that j-jerk!" Shippo sobbed. "H-he always m-makes her feel b-bad!"

"Yes, but had he ever let any harm come to her?" Miroku asked, smiling and trying to calm the kit down.

Shippo sniffed. "No," he admitted reluctantly.

"Then there you go," Sango assured him. "Kagome's fine, you should stop worrying about her. I'm sure she appreciates it, but don't you think she'd be a little upset that you didn't take care of yourself while she was gone?" She cajoled the young fox in a low voice, hoping it would make him sleepy.

The little fox demon sniffled once, then blinked. "I'm hungry."

Sango groaned. "Again?"

"Crying seems to work up an appetite for the young one," Kaede smiled, her eyes crinkling in the corners. "Let's see if we can rustle up some stew, eh?" She said to Shippo.

"Can I help?" Shippo leapt off of Sango's shoulder wearily and wiped his eyes.

"Of course," Kaede nodded, pleased that he was turning his attentions to something else other than crying. "Go fetch me a large pot," she instructed.

Sango took this opportunity to sneak out of the hut, and heaved a sigh of relief once she was outside. She stretched her arms out above her head and stared out into the night sky, smiling at the night-time beauty that surrounded her.

"He misses Kagome," Miroku snuck up next to Sango, causing her to jump in alarm.

"You think?" She snapped, annoyed that she hadn't heard him leave the hut. He was getting sneakier, she noted. "He hasn't slept in over a day, _I _haven't slept in over a day," she added in a moan, wiping her hands over her face in a weary manner.

"I slept just fine," Miroku commented cheerfully.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Sango growled in a voice that would make Inuyasha proud.

"Of course not," Miroku smiled. "I was merely pointing out facts."

"Your death will be a fact in a minute," Sango threatened, cranky and homicidal from lack of slumber.

"Sango," Miroku turned to her, his face serious for once. "Why don't you go ahead and sleep. I'll make sure Shippo gets some rest and doesn't disturb you."

Sango blinked and stared at the monk in awe and wonder, a total 180 degree turn around from her previous attitude. "I'm considering bearing your child," she replied in a dazed voice, cocking her head slightly to the side.

"You're delirious," Miroku chuckled, amused. "You've probably caught a fever from not sleeping." He gently placed a hand on her back, leading her back inside the hut. "Go on," he urged.

"Why are you being so nice?" She asked suspiciously.

"Because I tire of seeing those shadows under your eyes," Miroku replied honestly. "Now go!" He pointed to the door mat.

"You're planning on groping me while I'm out, aren't you?" Sango accused, glaring at him.

"Well now that you've mentioned it...."

_Whack! _"A simple 'No, Sango, I really do care for your heath' would have been nice!" She snapped.

"Sango, I really do care for your healthy body," Miroku replied seriously.

"Alright then," Sango nodded, too tired to tell the difference between his answer and her own. "I'm off to bed."

Miroku gave her a warm smile. "Sleep well."

She walked inside, and through the break in the doormat, he could hear a very interesting conversation between the miko and the tired fox demon.

"So I put in some of this...."

"Shippo, that's dirt, not herbs."

"And then you stir it with this...."

"Shippo, that's Miroku's staff."

"And then you light the fire with this...."

"Shippo! Put Kirara down!"

_Screech. Hiss.  
_

* * *

Inuyasha stepped out onto the porch, taking in a deep breath of fresh air. His eyes scanned the area surrounding the house, and finding nothing, began moving onto the shrine grounds. Walking around, he began sniffing the air for any usual scents. All the while, he kept the door, the only open entrance to the house, in his sight.

The last thing he needed was another little stunt pulled right out from under his nose. He still couldn't fathom how the bastard got into the house without his knowledge. Growling, he swore to himself that the bastard wouldn't come near his mate again.

Standing in the middle of the shrine grounds, he let out the deep breath he was holding and gazed at the well house longingly. Kami, he felt like stealing Kagome from her bed and throwing the both of them back into the feudal era. This modern world was getting on his nerves, not to mention his senses.

Back there, he could protect Kagome without any problems. She would be safe, something both his human and youkai side wanted very much.

A small sound caught his attention and he turned threateningly towards it. Crouched back, he held one claw over Tetsusaiga, prepared to strike at any moment. He immediately loosened his stance when he saw Kagome padding her way softly to him, wiping away the sleep from her eyes.

"What the hell are you doing out here?" He said harshly. "Go back to bed, I'll be there in a minute. I'm only checking the grounds."

She nodded, her face held down. She looked like she was still wiping her eyes, and he started wondering if she had something caught in it.

"Kagome?" He frowned and walked toward her. "Are you okay?"

She mumbled a response, one that he couldn't hear even with his demonic sensed.

"Talk louder," he ordered her, frowning in concern.

A little giggle escaped her lips and she held her hand over her mouth.

"Kagome?" He paused before reaching out a hand and grasping her shoulder.

Pain ripped through his stomach and he let out a grunt, his eyes widening. His free hand slowly slid up to lightly grasp her forearm, sliding down to her wrist. Feeling around the hand that clutched a rather large knife that had been imbedded in his stomach, he grunted again as it was thrust further in. Blood seeped through his robes, coating both of their hands with sticky fluid.

Inuyasha's eyes widened as he realized that this Kagome was wearing a different color shirt than the one that fell asleep beside him.

Sniffing lightly at the air, he cursed himself for not realizing it earlier.

Kagome's old scent.

* * *

Bwahaha! Evil cliffhanger! I know, this chapter sucks. I'm sorry. It's another 'filler' chapter. A lot of you wanted the story to get a move on and wanted to see what the stalker was up to with the clothes....so here it is!

PLEASE REVIEW!!! It just might take longer for the next chapter to come up here if I don't get some feedback. Let me know how I'm doing, please!! I didn't get a whole lot on the last chapter, and that made me feel bad. (pout) PLEASE REVIEW!


	16. Chapter sixteen

Disclaimer: This is your basic, run-of-the-mill disclaimer, which provides vital information. I do NOT own this can of Diet Coke. It belongs to my mother, and she is probably running around the house trying to find it as we speak.

On a smaller note, so insignificant it probably doesn't even need to be put up here....Inuyasha does not belong to me.

A/N: Heylo there peoples! Thank you for all the wonderful reviews! I'm hoping for more. (hint hint) So please, please REVIEW and I will ensure that this story keep running as smoothly as possible. Thank you.

(passes out airline peanuts)

* * *

It took a whole second for Inuyasha to process what was happening before firmly grasping the wrist his hand was laying upon and wrenching the dagger out of his stomach. He twisted the wrist in a sharp jerk, and the metal fell from its hand, falling useless to the concrete ground with a clank.

His body sprang into action, throwing the body to the ground and pinning it. Snarling, he drew back his arm and sliced his claws back down in an arc toward the head.

The figure with Kagome's body lifted its face, revealing an exact copy of her face as well.

Startled, his arm halted midway to her face and he let out a grunt of surprise. He tried to move his arm to complete its path, but it wouldn't budge. He couldn't do it. He couldn't harm something that looked exactly like Kagome. His heart gave a lurch, and he snarled to himself, screaming mentally that this wasn't Kagome.

"Who or what the _fuck _are you?!" He snarled, furious over the fact that he couldn't smell anything revealing about it.

The fake Kagome below him gasped, its face betraying a hurt expression. "Why, Inuyaha, how could you forget? It's me, Kagome!" It's eyebrows knit together in an innocent expression.

"Youkai!" Inuyasha spat. It had to be, what else could assume another's form and scent so well? Even its voice sounded exactly like Kagome, which confused the hell out of him. He still couldn't bring himself to harm the figure even though he knew it was a youkai and not actually Kagome herself.

Snarling, he ground his teeth together. "Answer me!" He shouted.

The figure smirked gloatingly. "Can't bring yourself to kill me when I look like this, eh?"

"Fuck you!" He yelled and snapped his arm down to seize it's throat threateningly. "Answer the goddamn question!"

A soft giggle escaped it. "Ahhh, Inuyasha. That temper of yours really is as bad as they say."

"How the hell do you know my name? Who's 'they'?" He tightened his grip on the figure's throat, furious.

Smirking, it looked up. "I know all about you and your companions," it said in Kagome's voice.

"What?!" Inuyasha felt his eyes widen.

"Shippo the fox kit. Sango the demon slayer, Miroku the lecherous monk," it's eys widened with glee. "And Kagome," it breathed in wonder.

A growl escaped his lips, and he almost saw red. He had no doubt that he would be full youkai right now if it wasn't for Testusaiga at his side. "You're the one who's been sending those notes to Kagome!" He choked the figure, able to hurt it now that he knew for sure it wasn't Kagome. "You're the one who's been stalking her!"

Unable to reply, the figure simply smiled as it was choked. He looked over meaningfully at the well house.

"Oh, FUCK no!" Inuyasha drew back his fist, preparing to knock it out.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome's startled scream came from the direction of the front door. He hesitated for a fraction of a moment, looking up to see her standing on the porch, watching wide eyed as he prepared to deck....well, herself. An image of herself.

That fraction of an instant was all the supposed youkai needed. Punching him directly where he had just been stabbed, it wriggled out from underneath him as he grunted in pain. Taking off like a shot, it headed towards the well house, a gloating smile on its face. "Let's see if the well will let me pass while I hold this form!" It shouted back to Inuyasha.

"No!" Inuyasha leapt forward to stop it, but the figure had already opened the doors and was standing on the edge of the well.

Turning back, Inuyasha watched in horror as the fake Kagome turned to look at him over her shoulder. Blowing a kiss, it turned around and leapt in.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome was immediately at his side, panting with exertion. "Did the well let it in?!" She huffed and keeled over to clutch at her knees, wincing at the pain in her side.

"Fuck it all!" Inuyasha shouted. He glared at the empty well. "What the _hell _was that?!"

"I don't know!" Kagome shouted frantically. "But it's got my form! The others-," she barely got half of her sentence out before Inuyasha had her by the waist and they were both falling down the well.

Yelping in surprise at the sudden action, she held onto his shirt and prayed the well would let her through. She wasn't sure how the other person was able to make it work, but maybe because it had her form, the well thought it was her. She wasn't sure if it would only let more than one Kagome through at a time, but her crazy ramblings were cut off by Inuyasha's light landing in the past.

Sighing in relief, she quickly turned him around and jumped onto his back. "Can you still smell....er, me?" She asked awkwardly.

"The term is bastard," Inuyasha replied, leaping out of the well. "Don't you dare refer to that thing as yourself."

"Right," She nodded.

Sniffing frantically, Inuyasha turned left and right to try and tell which direction the scent was strongest. Unfortunately, the fact that Kagome herself was right there made it near impossible to find another scent identical to her own.

Leaping into the nearest tree, he lowered her onto the branch. "Stay," he absently told her before jumping back down.

Muttering something about not being a dog, he held back a snicker and turned to more serious matters. In Kagome's form, the youkai, or whatever the fuck it was, could do some serious harm to their friends. It might even be able to see the shards as well.

Sniffing once more, he caught onto the old, lingering scent and sighed in relief to find that it was trailing away from the village. "It's going that way," Inuyasha pointed off into the forest.

Kagome fell limp against the trunk. "Thank god."

"We're not out of the woods, yet." He jumped back up to the branch and lifted her onto his back once more. "Who the hell knows what it could do in that form? We don't know if it can sense the jewel shards or if it has access to your miko powers."

Kagome's eyes widened as they reached the ground. "Or use the sit command."

"Aghhhh!" _Crash._

"Oops," Kagome gasped from her sitting position on top of his back. "I am so sorry Inuyasha! It slipped out! I didn't mean it!" She fumbled with her words, trying to rub his shoulder in apology.

"Bitch," he muttered as he lifted his upper body up with his arms. "What happened to saying 'it' instead of 'sit' in normal conversation?!" He shouted back over his shoulder, furious.

"I'm sorry!" She held a hand up to her chin, nervously tugging on her lower lip. "I forgot!"

Growling, he stood, careful to hold onto her legs so she wouldn't fall off in the shift. "You owe me for that one," he bit out.

Nodding, she gave him a tentative smile. "Well at least we know it still works!"

"You're _not _helping yourself, bitch!" He snarled at her before leaping off toward the village. "I oughta drop you right here," he mumbled as he tightened his grip on her legs.

"You wouldn't dare," Kagome told him firmly. "I'd 'it' you into the ground."

"Keh!" He stuck his nose up in the air, feigning indifference. "Maybe it'd be worth it."

"Would you just hurry up! There's some creep running around in my body out there!" She shouted in his ear, yanking on a lock of hair.

"Would you calm the fuck down?" He shouted back, finally reaching Kaede's hut. He dropped her to the ground and turned to face her. "The worst it can do is steal shards from other demons, we'll get them back as soon as we kill it." He frowned. "Hell, Kagome, it's in _your_ body. It probably can't even manage to kill a demon to take the damn shard."

Kagome's eyebrow twitched. "Sit!"

"Aghh!"

"KAGGGOOMMEEEE!" A bright bundle of orange fur hurtled itself toward Kagome, knocking her flat on her ass.

"Shippo!" She squealed and hugged him tight. "I missed you so much!"

"I missed you, Kagome!" Shippo cried. "I was so worried that you and dog boy weren't ever going to come back!"

Kagome blinked. "You were worried about Inuyasha?" She asked, astounded at the kit's admission.

"He was worried about both of you," Sango and Miroku emerged from the hut, both with relieved looks on their faces. "We all were."

Miroku nodded and helped Kagome to her feet. "We were about to conclude that the well had shut the both of you out."

"Keh!" Inuyasha pulled himself out of his new crater. "Something bad came up." He brushed the dirt off his shirt and jeans.

"Like your new clothes?" Sango eyed the modern outfit with distaste. "What the hell are those?" She pointed to his pants.

"Jeans!" Kagome supplied cheerfully. "He looks good, ne?"

"Interesting," Miroku admitted rather reluctantly.

"I wouldn't jump straight to 'good'....," Sango trailed off. "What happened to your fire rat robes?"

"They're still in her era. I didn't have time to grab them before we jumped down the well," Inuyasha crossed his arms. His ears lowered as they commented on his new clothes. Why didn't they like it? He caught Kagome on more than one occasion staring appreciatively at his jeans.

"Didn't have time?" Shippo spoke up. "What do you mean?" He frowned.

"Oh god, long story," Kagome groaned.

"You," Inuyasha pointed to her. "Inside now." He pointed to the hut. "You," he turned to point at Miroku. "Demon wards on the hut, now."

"Why? What's going on?" Sango turned her gaze from Kagome to Inuyasha.

"Kagome will explain to everyone what's been going on the past few days while I run back and get my old clothes," Inuyasha all but shoved Kagome into the hut. "I'll get your bag."

Kagome blushed. "Mind getting me some clothes? I have a feeling we're going to be here for a while."

Inuyasha blinked at her request. "Which....ones?"

"My uniform," she told him. "Just grab three of them. And er....other stuff," she moved her eyes shiftily to the side.

"What other stuff?" Shippo spoke up from his perch on her shoulder.

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted. "Nothing for you to be concerned about," he told the kit and turned on his heel to leave. "Get those wards up," he told Miroku in passing. "I'll shout for you to take them down when I get back."

"Wait!" Kagome stretched out an arm. "What if it takes _your _form?!"

Inuyasha paused, his back turned to the group. "FUCK!" He shouted. Taking a deep breath, he turned around. "Alright. We need some sort of system so we all know who's who."

"What?" Both Miroku and Sango looked around, completely lost.

Kagome sighed. "We'll figure that out later. To save time, we'll just ask you to transform Tetsusaiga when you get back. Not even a youkai can copy the Tetsusaiga, right?"

"Alright," he nodded, satisfied with the plan for now. Glaring at all of them, he snapped, "What the fuck are you doing? Get in the hut!" He waited until they were all in the hut and Miroku had placed wards all around it.

He was about to turn and walk away, but the fresh memory of his earlier sit came to mind. Grinning maniacally, he turned to the open doorway and his eyes met Kagome's. "Stay!" he pointed to her. "Sttaayyy! Good girl!" He turned and walked away.

"FREAK!" Kagome shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Remember!" He shouted over his shoulder. "If you sit me, I just might forget those 'other things' you need so much!"

"What 'other things'?" Shippo asked again, annoyed that nobody would tell him.

"JERK!" She yelled.

"TWIT!" He shouted and bounded off into the forest. Heh....let her stew for a while over that. Serves her right for sitting him.

Leaping through the forest, he quickly made his way to the well. Once his whole plan was set out in his head, he nodded to himself and jumped into it, hoping on only being gone for a few minutes. As much as he trusted Sango and Miroku to watch over Kagome and the kit, he would really prefer protecting them himself.

* * *

Kagome could tell by the looks on their faces that they were having difficulty processing all the information she just gave them. She looked from Sango's horrified expression, to Miroku's confused look, before landing back to Kaede's thoughtful visage.

Shippo, she already knew, was sleeping soundly in her lap, tucked under a robe she found lying in the corner. Sango had told her to leave the kit where he was, explaining that he had not had any sleep in the past day.

Guilty that she had not let them know earlier that she and Inuyasha were alright, Kagome hung her head and nodded.

"Inuyasha could not find a scent, you said?" Kaede asked Kagome after a long pause.

"Well, he says that it's an old scent," she frowned. "I think he means that it's a pale comparison to the real scent. Sort of like smelling last night's dinner in the kitchen the morning after."

Kaede nodded, taking in this new information.

"So it wasn't human after all," Miroku shifted in his seated position to inch closer to Sango, who moved quickly away. "The whole time you thought your stalker was human."

"Well," Kagome sighed. "I thought that it was because I've never really seen any demons in my time....the exception being the noa mask."

They all nodded, having heard the tale before.

"But now...." She shrugged. "I'm not sure. I think it might be, considering it can change its form and mask its scent."

"Not necessarily," Kaede spoke up. "There are some humans who dabble in the dark arts, and are able to possess some level of power. It would be a simple task to one who had trained long years to mask their scent or change their form."

"You believe they are using miko power?" Miroku asked the priestess.

She shook her head. "It might be a dark priestess. But then again, they might not be female."

"A dark sorcerer or sorts?" Kagome frowned.

"Something like that, yes," Kaede nodded.

"Well, if Inuyasha can't get a youkai scent, we'll have to assume it is one of these dark powers," Sango finally found her voice and spoke aloud.

Kagome sighed. "This is so confusing. Is anything in my life normal anymore?"

"Don't worry, Kagome. We've pulled out of worse situations," Miroku pointed out, scooting closer to her so he could pat her shoulder. He was about to pat something else when a familiar voice came from outside the hut.

"Oi!"

Turning to the direction of the door, everyone paused. Miroku stood and moved aside the doormat. "Yes?"

Inuyasha stood outside, dressed in his fire rat robe, with Kagome's huge pack lying at his feet. Reaching down, Inuyasha pulled out Tetsusaiga and it transformed.

"Congratulations!" Miroku cried in a cheery voice, already removing the wards. "You're passed our little test. Do come in," he gestured.

"Stuff it monk," Inuyasha growled and shouldered his way past him. Throwing the bag on the floor next to Kagome, he crossed his arms and glared at her. "Exactly how many 'other things' do you have?!"

"A lot, why?" She frowned at him.

"Do you know how many I had to sift through to find the other things?" His eyebrow twitched.

"My bras?" She mumbled in a low voice.

"I couldn't find any," he huffed. "But I did bring the other stuff."

"Great," Kagome rolled her eyes. "Now I have to wash them more often." Opening her bag, she was greeted with every single pair of underwear she owned. "How many did you bring?!" She screeched, rummaging through them to see if he brought her uniforms. Catching sight of green, she sighed in relief.

The hanyou shrugged. "Keh! Now at least you can't complain that you don't have any."

Kagome sifted through the rest, trying to find a bra hidden somehow in her uniforms. The thought of only having one did not sit well with her. Catching a slight movement on her left, she turned and saw Miroku, openly staring at her undergarments with a fascinated expression on his face.

Eyebrow twitching, she closed the bag and slapped him just as Sango's boomerang bone came down on his skull.

"Pervert!" Two voices shouted.

"Why is it you're hitting me when Inuyasha was the one who handled such objects?" Miroku mock pouted, rubbing his head.

"Because I asked him to get them for me," Kagome flushed.

"Keh! I'm hungry," Inuyasha leaned down and dug around her backpack, pulling out a couple of ramen cups.

"Inuyasha," Kagome asked warningly, glaring at the ramen. "Did you raid the kitchen while you were there?"

Inuyasha shrugged. "Maybe."

"How much ramen did you bring?" She asked, terrified at the thought of carrying all that weight.

"All of it."

"Sit!" She glared at him as he fell to the floor. "You're carrying the bag," she told him.

"Don't I always!?" He shouted in her face once he could sit up.

Kagome opened her mouth to say something, then paused. "I guess...."

"Well there you go!" He huffed and poked her in the side. "Make me some ramen?"

Kagome sighed. "Give it here," she took the ramen and started to boil some water. "Miroku? Why don't you put some wards on the door. We're not leaving to find it tonight, are we?" She asked, looking around. She had already assumed not since Inuyasha was getting ready for a meal.

They all shook their heads no and Miroku stood to complete the task.

"Ramen, anyone?" She asked everybody else, already pulling out more cups.

"Yes, thank you," Sango nodded, stroking Kirara's ears.

"No thank you," Kaede eyed the cups with suspicion. "I think I will sleep now."

"Goodnight then," Kagome smiled and watched as the elderly miko settled herself in her futon.

"Well, I think we should soon go out and find this....er...." Miroku trailed off. "Person?"

Inuyasha nodded. "I want to catch that bastard before he decides to up and leave the Musashi domain. It's traveling on foot, we'll be able to catch the bastard in no time."

They all nodded in agreement.

"Good," Kagome said, watching the water come to a boil. "I don't want that creep doing something weird while it's in my body. Heaven forbid it comes across Kouga and tries to hurt him in the same way he hurt you."

'Good,' Inuyasha thought to himself, a happy smile on his face.

Kagome slapped her fist in her palm. "Speaking of which...."

"No!" Inuyasha told her firmly. "I'm fine."

"Yes!" She said just as firmly, pulling her first aid kit out of her bag. "Haori off. Now."

Inuyasha growled in response. "No. Leave it alone."

"Yes! You're hurt! I saw the blood and the knife!" She argued. "Take it off!"

"Beg me to," Inuyasha smirked.

Fighting back a grin, she whacked him over the head with her first aid kit. "Do it!"

"No," Inuyasha sniffed, crossing his arms.

"SIT!"

"Aggggghhhh!"

Shippo woke up and yawned, pleased that things were back to normal. "I'm so glad you guys are back."

* * *

Wow that was a loooong one! I couldn't find a good place to stop, LOL. Now you must all REVIEW! Or you shall not have any cookies.......BWaHAHAHAHA!

Sesshoumaru: Did you say something? (eating a cookie)

Bastard! Those are for after you review!

Sesshoumary: (claws glowing) What was that?

(starry eyed) Please have some cookies.


	17. Chapter seventeen

Disclaimer: No, Inuyasha doesn't belong to me. But you can bet your noodle that one day he will! Bwahahahaha!

A/N: Heya peoples! Thanks so much for the wonderful reviews. They really made my day. Sorry about not getting this up earlier.....I had work and stuff.

What? You guys think I stay home all day and write? HAH! I wish.

(distributes tater tots)

* * *

"Kagomeee!" Miroku cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted off into the distance. "Kaagooomeeeee!"

"Would you shut the fuck up, monk?" Inuyasha growled, leaping alongside Kirara, where the monk and Sango were situated.

"The joke was old twenty minutes ago!" Kagome shouted at the same time, gripping onto Inuyasha's shoulders as he picked up the pace. "Quit calling that thing by my name!"

"Kagome," Shippo's voice wobbled as he hung onto her shoulder for dear life. "Can we slow down a bit?"

Worried that Shippo was going to be sick all over her uniform-and only bra- she yanked on a lock of silver hair. "Why _are _we going so fast?" She asked him. "Can we slow down? I think Shippo may be getting sick."

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted. "Youkai don't get sick!"

"Tell that to my stomach," Shippo moaned.

Irritated, he growled and picked up the pace, easily passing by Kirara.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome shouted and clenched her legs around his waist so she was more secure in his back. "Why are you speeding up?"

"Because I feel like it!" He yelled back in a snarl. Fuck it all, he had lost the bastard's scent a while back, but didn't want to tell anybody. After they ate ramen last night, Miroku had argued that they should have gone out right then and there to find the imposter.

Inuyasha refused after taking one look at both the women and kit in the group. Shippo was sound asleep in Kagome's lap, snoring softly. Both Kagome and Sango had shadows under their eyes from appeared to be lack of sleep. He knew Kagome had only been asleep a few hours in her time, and found out later from Miroku that Sango had been up taking care of a crying Shippo in their absence. He himself had not slept at all, but because he was a hanyou, it hardly fazed him.

He had insisted that they stay and get a couple more hours rest and told them they would all wait until morning's light before starting the search.

And now look at where they were. He glared across at Miroku, daring him to say anything about their predicament. It would be a frigid day in hell before he admitted he was wrong, and an even colder day when he would allow someone else to tell him.

Lifting his head, Inuyasha sniffed at the air again. He was thankful they were traveling downwind, as it helped him to separate Kagome and Shippo's scent from everything else. Taking in another deep breath, he frowned and barely caught scent of something....

"There!" He shouted with glee, proud of the fact that he had caught their trail once again. Bounding off in the direction where it originated, he picked up the pace once again, leaping through the trees.

"I-nu-ya-sh-a!" Shippo shouted a syllable in between leaps. "Sl-ow d-own!"

"I don't think so, brat!" He shouted back. "I've caught the scent again, and damn if I'm going to lose it again!"

"You mean you lost it earlier?" Kagome shouted angrily in his ear. "Why the hell didn't you tell us?!"

Flipping his ears back, he ignored her and his eyes swept the floor of the forest as he passed by, searching for, well.....something that looked like Kagome.

'But _not _Kagome,' he told himself firmly. This time he wouldn't make the mistake of hesitating before killing it. It was not Kagome.

"Shippo!" Kagome screeched, fear leaking into her scent.

Inuyasha reacted instantly. One second they were leaping through the air, and the next Kagome found herself standing on a tree branch, her back to the trunk and Inuyasha standing in front of her, Tetsusaiga at the ready.

Looking around frantically, Inuyasha tightened his grip on his sword, prepared to kill whatever threatened his mate. When his gaze found nothing threatening, he frowned in confusion as Kirara floated down in front of him, Miroku and Sango both holding sympathetic looks and gazing to a spot behind him.

A particular odor wafted under his nose and he cringed, ears laid back. Swallowing, he sheathed Tetsusaiga and slowly tuned to face a furious, and rather dirty, Kagome clutching a sick fox kit.

Kagome glared furiously at him, feeling the sticky fluid on her shirt seep through to her skin. She ruined the glowering effect with a gag as the stench covered her nose. "Oh god," she moaned. "I think _I'm _going to be sick." She pressed her free hand to her stomach, trying to fight back the bile.

"I think it's best if we stop," Miroku pointed out calmly to Inuyasha.

"What?!" He exploded. "Are you nuts?! You guys stay here, _I'm _going on to kill that fucker!" He shouted and crouched down to take another leap.

"SIT!" Kagome shouted and watched with satisfaction as he fell with a grunt onto the wide branch. "You are going to get the both of us down from here, and then you are going to find me a stream so I can clean up!" She ordered.

Snarling at the fact that his bitch would dare give him orders, he begrudgingly picked himself up and carefully, so as not to touch anything unwanted, carried both her and the kit down to the forest floor.

"I'm sorry Kagome," Shippo sniffled and held tight onto her shoulder. "I didn't mean to."

"It's okay, Shippo, it's not your fault," she rubbed his back and sent a glare directed at Inuyasha, reminding everyone who's fault it really was.

"Keh!" Inuyasha turned his head the other way and crossed his arms, his stance stating that he couldn't give a care. The fact that his ears remained laid back, however, was a dead give away to his remorse.

"Are you feeling any better?" Kagome gently asked Shippo.

"Not really," he moaned and grasped onto her neck tighter. "My stomach hurts real bad, Kagome."

Sighing, Kagome dropped onto a fallen log. Sitting still for a moment, as if contemplating her options, she finally lifted her head to look at Inuyasha. "Go," she gestured her head to him. "See if you can catch up to it."

"What about wanting to clean up?" He asked, trying not to hold up a sleeve to his nose. She stunk to high heaven, but he wasn't about to tell her so. A few 'sits' might be in order after a comment like that.

She sighed, weary. "I'll find a stream myself." She stood up and began looking around, half-expecting a stream to be nearby like there usually was. What she would give to have Inuyasha's nose right now....

"No," he was already shaking his head, terrified at the thought of her going off into the forest alone. "I'm going with you."

"I thought you wanted to catch up to it?" Kagome asked, narrowing her eyes at him. His was so eager earlier, and _now _that Shippo was sick he wanted to slow down? A small angry huff escaped her mouth, and she raised her nose in the air. Bastard.

"Keh!" he snorted, noticing the angry action. He placed a hand on her back, gently leading her in the direction of water. "The bastard can wait." Besides, he thought to himself, I've lost the fucker's scent again.

"Let me guess," she replied wryly, as if reading his thoughts. "Lost the scent again?"

Growling, he made sure they were far away from the others before leaning down and biting her earlobe. "Shut up."

"Hey!" Shippo tried to speak up after watching their interaction. "What'd you do _that _for?"

"What did I do what for?" Inuyasha growled softly at the sick demon.

"You nipped her!" Shippo's eyes widened in surprise. "My pa only did that to my ma when he was angry with her!" He announced with realization.

"Your point being?" Inuyasha snapped.

"_They _were mates, you jerk!"

"Shippo," Kagome intervened, placing a hand on his back. "I think you should leave it alone."

"But it's wrong, Kagome!" The little kit exploded. "The jerk face is punishing you like you're mates and you're _not!_" He crossed his arms over his stomach. "I'll bet he hasn't even found a way to tell you about the intent claim, either?"

He smiled gloatingly, knowing that he had Inuyasha right where he wanted him. "It's so obvious that nearly _every _demon from miles away can smell it." He rubbed it in further, wanting Kagome good and mad when she sat Inuyasha into the ground.

Inuyasha snarled, turning a slight pink color, and Shippo grinned.

"Inuyasha's told me about it," Kagome replied patiently.

"_What?!_"Shippo jerked his face back to meet with Kagome's eyes. "You mean?" He looked back and forth in between them.

"Shippo, we'll discuss this later," Kagome replied, coming to the edge of a small lake. Sighing in relief, she lowered the kit to the ground and helped him out of his dirty clothes. Leaning over to wash them, she instructed the kit to jump in and clean up, which he complied to eagerly.

Watching Kagome scrub the kit's clothes for a while, Inuyasha finally huffed in annoyance, reaching over and taking them away. Taking over the task of scrubbing them, he gestured with his head that she should jump in as well.

"Thanks," she sent him a grateful smile.

"Keh! Hurry it up, you smell."

She felt her eyebrow twitch, but ignored it. "I'll let that slide since it's true."

"Kagome-chan?" Sango's voice came from out of the bushes, and was followed by her body. "You forgot your bathing supplies," she handed them over carefully, trying not to get too close to her.

"Arigato," Kagome accepted them with a grateful smile.

Sango nodded. "Should we set up camp for lunch?" She turned to face Inuyasha, who was busy trying to hide the fact that he was washing the kit's clothes. "We've been traveling all day now, and haven't had a morning meal." She pointed out.

Back turned, Inuyasha nodded. "It's going to be a fast meal," he told her firmly. "No moping around, we need to catch up to that creep."

Sango nodded. "As long as I get food, I'm happy."

"I'll see if I can catch any fish," he nodded and mumbled.

"Alright," Sango sighed in relief, then stretched her arms out, gazing at the pool of water longingly. "I'd love to join you, Kagome, but...." She gave a nervous chuckle.

"Don't worry about it," Kagome forced a smile. "I wouldn't want to be near me either."

Sango stood, waiting for Inuyasha to join her so that Kagome could bathe. "Er....Inuyasha?" She called out hesitantly, a frown settling on her features. "I hardy think it's appropriate to watch Kagome bathe."

"Is she bathing right now?" He asked sardonically over his shoulder.

"Well, no...."

"So quit worrying and get that fire started. I'll bring the fish," Inuyasha turned back to his task.

Sango frowned and turned to Kagome, who smiled encouragingly.

Nodding reluctantly, Sango turned on her heel and strode back to camp. Inuyasha waited until he could no longer hear her footfalls before turning to face Kagome.

"Take 'em off," he gestured to her clothes.

Irritated at his tone, and still angry over her predicament, she began searching for a handy boulder. Finding none available, she sighed and settled on a rock, throwing it at his head while he was turned away.

"What the fuck was that for?!" Inuyasha shouted, rubbing his skull and standing up, easily towering over her body.

"For not slowing down, damn you!" She shouted as she turned his body around the other direction. "Now my one and only bra is ruined!" Making sure he was turned around and Shippo was looking elsewhere, she carefully peeled off her shirt, gagging as it went over her head.

"Ellchh...." She groaned and threw it in the water. Tugging off her bra, she threw that in as well, muttering curses at Inuyasha the whole time.

"I can hear you," he reminded her in a low voice.

"Good!" She snapped and slid out of the rest of her clothes. "Don't peek!" She ordered him as she quickly made her way into the water.

"Who'd want to when you're covered in vomit?!" Inuyasha snapped back.

"So are you saying you would if I wasn't?" She raised an eyebrow at him as he turned around to face her now that she was submerged in water.

"Keh!" Inuyasha lifted his nose in the air, crossing his arms. "Stay here, I'm going back to get you some clothes," he ordered harshly before turning on his heel and striding away.

Kagome stuck her tongue out at his back and turned to find Shippo. Looking around, she frowned when she realized he wasn't there, and neither were her clothes. She crossed her arms over her chest and called out, "Shippo?"

"Right here," she sighed in relief as his voice came from behind her on the bank.

Turning around, she smiled as she watched him scrub her clothes, having gotten dressed back into his own wet garments. "Thanks," she smiled.

"It was my fault," he hung his head in shame.

"Don't blame yourself for being sick," she told him and dunked her head under water, scrubbing at her chest with her scented soap to remove any unpleasant odors. Deciding on washing her hair while she was in the water, she ducked under again before reaching for her shampoo.

Inuyasha returned a short while later, her uniform dangling from his claws. One look at Shippo and the kit knew to make himself scarce.

"I'll wait for you back at the camp," Shippo told Kagome once she had resurfaced from rinsing off the shampoo. "I cleaned your outfit, it's over there," he pointed to the articles of clothing in question, drying on a fallen log.

"Thank you," Kagome smiled. "I'll be there in a little bit." She leaned over and picked up her undergarments, which the kit was too embarrassed to clean, and began scrubbing them.

"Here," Inuyasha tossed the outfit on the ground in front of her. "Get out and get dressed," he told her before wading into the water himself.

"What are you doing?" She frowned and quickly leapt out, covering herself with her uniform top.

"Catching fish," he replied absently, his eyes roaming over the water. "Sango nearly hit me over the head with her boomerang bone when I came back without some."

Laughing, Kagome threw on her uniform and began shaking out her other wet clothes in attempts to dry them quickly.

"You think that's funny?" Inuyasha asked just as his hand went tearing into the calm water, slicing through the surface.

"Very," Kagome smiled as he threw a wriggling carp onto the shoreline. It flopped around for a while before calming down and twitching. A couple more landed beside it a few moments later.

"That's good enough," Inuyasha waded back to the shoreline. "If Sango wants more, she can get it herself."

"You caught five fish," she pointed out. "I don't think she can eat more than one in a sitting."

"Keh, she's getting two," Inuyasha picked them up and started walking back to camp. "I can smell sickness hanging around her scent, she needs the energy."

Kagome nodded, picking up her clothes and walking beside him. "Is it serious?" She asked, worried.

He shook his head. "It just smells like something minor."

"Well, from what I heard, she hasn't gotten a lot of sleep the past couple of days," Kagome remarked. "I'm betting it's a fever."

"Either way, we can't afford for her to be sick right now," Inuyasha picked up the pace. "With this creep and the jewel shards, not to mention Naraku....." He cracked his knuckles.

"You're right," Kagome nodded her head. "After we find this.....er, dark sorcerer, I guess you could call it, we should probably take a small break before moving on to get the rest of the shards. I don't want Sango to get worse."

Inuyasha huffed a bit, then reluctantly nodded. "You have some medicine in your bag, right?"

"Yeah," She nodded. "I'll give her a couple aspirin."

He nodded, and they entered the camp.

"About damn time!" Sango called out from her position by the fire. "What took you?!"

"Well so sorry if the fish weren't exactly jumping into my claws," Inuyasha snorted, then threw the fish in the pot that had been taken out of Kagome's bag.

"It'd be quite a spectacle if they did," Miroku stroked his chin, smiling.

"Stuff it, monk," Inuyasha grumbled before sitting down. He blinked as his gaze fell on Shippo. "What the hell are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Shippo grunted as he tried to undo the ties of Kagome's sleeping bag. "I'm getting ready for a nap."

"Alright, that's it!" Inuyasha leapt to his feet. "This is not a fucking trip," he shouted. "We are going after a _stalker _here, do you people understand that?!"

Kagome nodded, Shippo yawned, Miroku stared blankly at him, and Sango didn't tear her eyes away from the cooking fish.

"Why do I even bother with this group?" He snarled and sat back against a tree.

"Because we feed you," Kagome smiled and poured boiling water into a ramen container.

"That's the _only _reason," he snapped and tore the cup away from her. "Hurry up and eat, we're leaving soon!"

Collective groans went up all through the group.

* * *

"Inuyasha, can we slow it down?" Kagome shouted. "This is why we had to stop in the first place!"

"You all wasted time, and now I'm going to make up for it!" He shouted angrily, not breaking stride as a clump of trees were soon in his path. He leapt through them with ease, taking care not to jostle his passengers too much.

Finding flat ground once again, he slowed the pace a little bit to accommodate Kagome's request.

"Inuyasha!" Miroku shouted from above as Kirara came down to hover over the ground as she sped alongside him.

"What?" He shouted back.

"We could see Kouga's henchmen approaching from before us!" He pointed just as the two broke through the tree line, running towards them.

"Great!" Inuyasha snarled. "Just what we need!"

"Where's Kouga?" Kagome asked, frowning.

"Why do you fucking care?" Inuyasha shouted, gripping her thighs tighter and lightly pinching the skin underneath.

"Damn it Inuyasha!" Kagome winced. "It was a question! Stop punishing me for something I don't deserve!" She yanked on his ear in retaliation.

"Aghh!" He yanked his head away from her grasp. Motioning everyone to stop, he halted and set Kagome down on the ground, taking a protective stance in front of her. "What the hell do they want?" He spat, waiting for them to come closer.

"Kagome nii-chan!" Ginta shouted, an astonished look on his face. "Why did you do that?"

"Eh?" Kagome stepped back, startled. "Do what?"

By that time the two wolf demons had slid to a stop ten feet away from the group, weapons held out hesitantly on front of them.

"Do what?!" Ginta frowned. "You need to ask?"

"Er....yes?" Kagome leaned forward, confused.

"What the fuck are you blathering on about?" Inuyasha snapped, arms crossed.

"Kagome, she wounded Kouga and then ran off!" Ginta turned his gaze back to Kagome. "Why?"

"What?!" Kagome leapt forward, only to be held back by Inuyasha.

"Which way did Kagome go?" Inuyasha asked.

Confused, the two wolf demons shared a look before turning back to Inuyasha. "Right there," they pointed to her.

"It wasn't me!" Kagome protested. "There's a dark sorcerer walking around in my form!"

"Is this true?" Ginta asked, unsure.

"Why would I lie?" Kagome held out her hands.

"Why would you injure Kouga?" The other spat angrily.

Inuyasha snarled. "Kagome didn't do a goddamn thing, now shut your mouth and tell us which direction it went!"

Ginta swallowed, and hesitantly decided to trust their story. "We thought we saw it run this way."

Kagome gasped, her body tensing. "I sense shikon shards."

"Where?" Inuyasha drew his sword. "I _knew _the fucker was after them!"

"No," Kagome shook her head. "There are two of them."

"Kouga," Miroku and Sango stated as they both slid off Kirara.

Inuyasha growled. "I swear if that mangy wolf comes within five feet of you...."

His retort was cut off short as a cloud of dust spun its way towards him and an unexpected punch knocked him a few feet away.

"Kouga," Kagome stated as the wolf prince grabbed her hands.

"Kagome, if you wanted it rough, you could have just asked," Kouga raised an eyebrow at her teasingly.

Blushing furiously, she noticed the ugly bruise forming on his jaw. "It wasn't me!" She protested as Miroku let out a loud snicker.

"Fucking wolf, get your hands off her!" Inuyasha grabbed Kagome around the waist and dropped her behind him, raising his sword in the process. "I'm getting sick and tired of you nosing your way into _my _claim!"

"Heh," Kouga crossed his arms. "That puny little scent on her body? I can smell the kit's scent over yours. Besides," his eyes roamed over her neck. "I'm not seeing any mark. She's still unclaimed as far as I'm concerned."

Growling, Inuyasha reached back and grabbed Kagome's wrist. "Back off!" He shouted. "Tell us where the other Kagome went!" he snarled at Ginta.

"Other Kagome?" Kouga frowned. "I knew you were stupid, but now you're delusional?"

"Kouga?" Ginta stepped forward. "The Kagome that was with you earlier was not the real Kagome. They say it was a dark sorcerer who took the form of your mate."

"SHE'S NOT HIS MATE!"

"Is this true?" Kouga ignored Inuyasha and looked past him to Kagome, who was nodding furiously.

"Well, then," Kouga stretched his arms in a lazy fashion. "Easily solved. I'll kill him and then you'll some back with me to the den."

"THE FUCK SHE WILL!" Inuyasha snarled, his face turning red with anger. Worried that he'd pop a vein, Kagome leaned in and nuzzled his back.

"Kouga, I won't go back with you to your den," she stated firmly. "But if you could point the direction it took off in, I'd be grateful."

Kouga beamed, eager to show up Inuyasha. "Of course I'll assist you. You're my mate, Kagome."

Kagome moaned and tried to hide her face in the back of Inuyasha's haori. Ohhh, it's going to be a long day.

* * *

Ah HAH! Chapter 17 is up! WOOOHOOOO! Happy day for people everywhere! (well, maybe not Inuyasha....he looks kinda ticked.)

Inuyasha: FUCKING WOLF! ILL MURDER HIM!

Pipe down would you? I'm working on Chapter 18......REVIEW PLEASE!! Hehe..please...it's such a funny word....


	18. Chapter eighteen

Disclaimer: I own nothing, except this piece of floss and a pair of chopsticks. If somebody could loan me some clothes, that'd be great.

A/N: Heya...whew, just got back from work. I was working all weekend, so I couldn't write this chapter and get it up the next day like I usually do.

But hey, girl's gotta work for her anime sometime, right?

THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS! Please continue to do so, it really makes my day after a crappy time at work.

- - Note: This is a real filler chapter. I needed this one to move along the plot, so if it sucks, I apologize. The next one will be ten times better, I promise! - -

* * *

"Kouga, are you sure this is the right way?" Kagome asked as the large group sped through rough terrain. She envied Sango, Miroku, and Shippo, who were high above the ground and flying smoothly along. Grunting as another leap sent her stomach flying, she held onto Inuyasha's shoulders a little more tightly.

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted loudly. "I think the wolf if leading us on a fucking goose chase! I can't smell a damn thing, he's making it up!" He snarled at the wolf youkai, who was speeding alongside him. Both males were competing for the lead, and neither of them were willing to give it up.

"Don't listen to him, Kagome," Kouga growled. "Everybody knows a wolf's nose is superior to a mangy mutt."

"Want to run that past me again?" Inuyasha snarled viciously, wishing Kagome were with the others so he could beat the damn wolf bloody.

"Disgusting dog," Kouga spat. "I don't know why my Kagome decided to take pity on you and stay, but I can only stand by my mate's decision."

"SHE'S NOT YOUR MATE!" Inuyasha roared, feeling the fury rise within him.

"Kouga!" Kagome shouted angrily. "Can we focus on the task at hand here?"

"Of course, Kagome," Kouga tilted his head lightly and smiled in her direction. "Anything to please my mate."

Watching Inuyasha tense up and shout at the wolf yet again, Kagome felt the irresistible urge to throw her shoe at someone. Preferably both of the shouting males. She was getting _real _sick and tired of them fighting.

"Kagome-chan?" Sango called out from above.

"Yeah?" She managed to get her voice heard above the noise level of both snarling idiots.

"Are you sure it's safe there?" Sango asked, glancing worriedly over the small group.

"Are you kidding? With me here, they won't try and fight physically," Kagome shouted back to the demon slayer.

"I meant safe for you," Sango muttered to herself. "What if they _do_ break out into a fight?" She asked Miroku worriedly over her shoulder.

He shrugged, not particularly worried. "It's not likely to happen with Kagome right there," he pointed out. "Kagome's right. They won't kill each other if she's with them."

"It's never stopped them from fighting before," Sango retorted.

"Yes, but was Kagome with Inuyasha at the time?"

"Yes," Sango replied tightly, eyebrows lowering dangerously remembering the many times her friend was inadvertently put into danger because of the hanyou's jealousy.

"While traveling on his back?"

"Well....."

"There you go," Miroku pat her shoulder. "She'll be fine, don't worry so much."

Quickly intercepting his hand before he could pat something else, she twisted it until his arm fell lack in pain and went back to watching the scene below with a worried face. Miroku sighed heavily and rubbed his stinging wrist with a pout.

"You bring me no joy," he muttered dramatically.

"Define 'joy', would you?" Sango's voice lowered dangerously and she glared murderously at him over her shoulder.

"Can anybody smell _anything?_" Kagome shouted from below, clearly exasperated.

"I can smell your lovely scent, Kagome," Kouga replied happily, oblivious to her anger. "It overpowers even the sickening scent of dog."

"That's it!" Inuyasha came to a halt in a clearing and set down Kagome a little too roughly on the ground. Ignoring her yelp, he drew Tetsusaiga, and pointed it at the wolf, intent on teaching him a lesson.

"Keep your goddamn distance and don't you say another word to Kagome! I'm going to make you respect my intent claim whether you like it or not!" He lunged at the wolf, bringing down the sword in a slashing motion.

"Whup!" Kouga leapt away, landing on a boulder a few yards from the group. "You better watch where you're swinging that toy, puppy!" He smirked gloatingly.

"Shut the fuck up!" Inuyasha snarled. "Kaze no kisu!" He roared and let loose a blast as he tore through the scar. Watching with a satisfied smirk, he watched the blast rip its way to the wolf, ending with a large explosion one it reached it's mark.

Kagome gasped, and watched as the ground was ripped apart and spread into the air before coming crashing back down again, creating a screen of dust. Coughing lightly, she tried in vain to keep her eyes open. "Inuyasha!" She shouted desperately, not seeing Kouga anymore. "Stop!"

The dust soon began to settle, the haze parting. In a blur of motion, Kouga sprang out of the dust and let loose a strangled cry as he punched Inuyasha in the stomach, sending the hanyou flying back a few feet. Heaving, he struggled to stand up straight, but a particular scrape on the side of his knee was preventing him from doing so.

"Bastard!" He roared, snarling.

"Well," Miroku sighed dramatically as the scene unfolded below him. "I guess the Wind Scar just isn't what it used to be."

"I can't believe this!" Sango shouted furiously. "We're supposed to be cooperating here!"

"Did you really think that would happen?" Shippo sighed and landed on her shoulder, avidly watching the fight below.

"If the cause was for Kagome's sake, then yes!" She cried.

Kagome herself had given up long ago, sitting on a boulder and holding her head in her hands. She was torn between being relieved that Kouga was safe, or running to Inuyasha to see if he was okay. She bit her lip and tried to blink back the tears that threatened to spill over her lids.

It was the dust, she told herself. Just the dust.

Never mind the fact that she hadn't gotten enough sleep _and_ her stalker turned out to be a sorcerer who was now in Sengoku Jidai, which was all her fault. _Or_ the fact that her blood pressure was through the roof with two idiots fighting over her like she was some prize to be won.

It was a wonder she hadn't started bawling ten minutes ago.

Snarling, Inuyasha threw his body forward and landed a good swipe on Kouga's leg with his claws, tearing right through his wound. Heh, that'd slow him down. Watching as the wolf landed rather heavily on the ground away from him, he lifted Tetsusaiga.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed in fear.

Turning his head towards her, he caught out of the corner of his eye a flash of purple light. Turning his body as much as he could, he grunted as something bit into his shoulder instead of his heart.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome began running towards him, a horrified expression on her face.

Looking down, he was slightly surprised to find an arrow sticking out of his shoulder. Lifting his gaze, he watched almost in slow motion as the very image of Kagome reached for another arrow and notched it, aiming this time for Kouga, who was occupied staring dumbly at the imposter.

It was an exact replica, down to the same uniform. A smirk was playing upon its lips, Kagome's exact eyes that were usually so soft were gloating harshly. The only difference Inuyasha could find, other than the faded scent and the expression, was the shoes. Instead of the brown ones that Kagome usually wore, it wore a pair similar to his new 'running shoes'.

"You guys were serious?" Kouga asked in a whisper as he sniffed lightly in the air. How the hell was he supposed to kill something that looked and smelled exactly like Kagome? Quite honestly, he thought it was all just a joke. He was only willing to play along because Kagome asked him to.

"I thought we covered this already!" Inuyasha snarled, watching as the imposter stretched the arrow back a bit further. He reached up and tore the arrow out of his shoulder with a grunt. "Move your ass!" He shouted to the wolf demon.

The fake Kagome smirked and loosed the arrow.

* * *

A lone figure stood atop the steps of the Shrine, the wind softly blowing it's hair askew in its path. Gazing around the area, it took a careful stock of the shrine grounds. It's young face was bathed in the orange sunset, revealing a young male visage. He heaved a sigh, and turned his head toward the small well house a few yards away.

"Why'd you call me here?" A male voice called out from behind the figure, and a shadow of an older man slowly made his its way up the steps with a grunt. Heaving, the older man managed to pull himself up the last step and sighed.

"You asked to meet," the younger one replied, watching as the man stood beside him and wiped his brow with a handkerchief.

"Yes, but why here? Isn't this a little risky?"

"Perhaps," the younger voice allowed. "I trust headquarters filled you in on the events that have happened in your absence?"

"Heh," the older man replied. "Headquarters. You make it sound so official."

"What else should I call it?" The shorter snapped lightly. "Office in the basement?"

"That's what it is," the older man replied sardonically. "But to move things along, yes, I've received the information."

"Good," the other nodded.

"Which makes me wonder why we're here," he mused aloud. "Isn't this dangerous? What if someone sees us?"

"They've gone down the well," the younger replied shortly.

A pause. "Oh dear."

"It somehow managed to find a way into it as well."

"Kami, we weren't able to stop it," the man sighed. "What a mess."

The younger figure nodded. "What do we do now?"

"What can we do?" The man scoffed. "Looks like we lost the bastard again."

"It appears the time-traveling well of legend is in fact, real."

"So it seems," the older man nodded.

"We should have killed him when we had the chance," the younger figure sighed lightly.

"It's too late now," the other replied. "Let's not dwell on the past."

"The past is part of the problem," the younger figure pointed out.

Silent for a moment, the older man finally turned to his companion. "Do we still have his belongings?"

"Yes, why?"

"I think it's time we went back to the basement and try to sort this all out."

"Headquarters," the younger corrected angrily as they made their way back down the steps.

"Whatever makes you feel important....."

* * *

Grunting, Kouga sped away from his spot, not bothering to look as it was pierced by a purifying arrow a second later.

"Well, it appears I have some of her powers, as well," the Kagome look-alike smirked. "I wonder...." It turned to gaze at Inuyasha, a marveled look on its face. "What will happen if I say the word she used before?"

Inuyasha growled, angry over the fact that the beads were still on him in the first place. Quite honestly, he didn't mind that Kagome could use them, it helped bring him back when he was turned full youkai, but the thought of an enemy possessing that kind of power over him did not sit well in his stomach.

"What the fuck are you?!" He raged demandingly, claws clenching Tetsusaiga.

It giggled in a very non-Kagome way. "Isn't it obvious?"

"Sorcerer!" Kagome shouted across the clearing, already notching one of her own arrows into place on her bow.

"Correct!" It smirked. "Ahhh, Kagome. Always the smart one." It leered at her.

"Bastard!" Both Inuyasha and Kouga sprung into action, leaping forward to try and take a piece out of the imposter. Inuyasha yelped in surprise as his body was met with a sharp slap, sending him flying back before he could reach the sorcerer.

"A barrier!" Kouga snarled and picked himself up from where he was thrown.

"Ever the smart one, you disgusting wolf," it curled a lip in distaste. "You, I think, will die first."

Reaching from within Kagome's uniform, it produced a shell, which it then threw to the ground and watched triumphantly as both youkai and hanyou were paralyzed, held helpless to the ground by a thick powder that spread through the air and covered them.

Snarling, Inuyasha tried with all his might to lift him limbs, but found them immobile. Grunting, he tried to stay upright, but lost his balance in the struggle and fell flat onto his back, yelling curses on the way down.

A flash of purple streaked past Inuyasha's vision and he managed to lift his head enough to watch in triumph as Kagome's arrow pierced through the barrier and landed deep into the imposter's thigh.

Looking down, it raised an eyebrow. It slowly reached down and plucked it from the flesh, not bothering to wince as a flow of blood ran down its leg, unchecked. "Did you really think this would slow me down?" It sneered at Kagome. "I will not rest until the crimson talisman is in my hands!" It lunged forward, a katana appearing in its hand.

"Crimson talisman?" Miroku's head snapped up in surprise as he leapt off Kirara.

"You know of it?" Sangoa asked worriedly, preparing her boomerang bone by throwing it over she shoulder with a grunt.

He nodded. "I'll explain later, right now we need to stop this."

Sango nodded. "Here goes," she grunted and twisted her body around, letting loose a battle cry as the bone went sailing out of her hands, tearing through the air. Missing the sorcerer by ten feet, she watched with satisfaction as it spun back, preparing to hit the imposter on the return.

"I don't think so!" It shouted in Kagome's voice and brought it's katana down just before the weapon could get near. Slicing through the boomerang, the katana was stuck, imbedded in the bone and it swore viciously, trying to remove its weapon.

"The powder!" Shippo cried out in realization. "It's holding them down!"

"I cannot suck it into my wind tunnel," Miroku replied, frustrated. "It would pull all three of them in!" He clenched his cursed hand in anger.

Shippo's thoughts raced into some sort of plan. Reaching from within his vest, the small kit produced a leaf. Holding it in both hands, he focused his energy and watched with pride as it transformed into a giant leaf.

Grunting, he heaved it down, sending a giant burst of wind towards the paralyzed males, lying helplessly on the ground. Heaving again, he used every bit of energy to keep fanning it up and down, creating a strong wind, which moved the thick powder back over the sorcerer.

"That's it Shippo!" Kagome cried out, snapping her fingers. "You've got him trapped in his own trick!"

"Annoying runt!" The sorcerer spat, reaching from within the uniform and yanking out an amulet that lay around its neck. Gripping it in its fist, it began muttering an incantation. Kagome's double began glowing brightly, causing everybody to turn their heads away. In a blink, the light was gone, as well as the sorcerer.

"Bastard!" Inuyasha shouted, slowly lifting himself up from the ground. The spell was still slightly effective, and he found his movements sluggish.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome cried and ran towards him.

"Where'd it go?" Kouga snarled, finally able to lift himself up.

"Gone," Inuyasha replied shortly, eyebrows lowering dangerously.

"Fucker, he's gonna die."

Inuyasha nodded, not completely sure if he should be worried over the fact that he had just agreed with Kouga.

* * *

Whew.....alright, that took forever. I have a feeling that this chapter isn't as good as the others. I've had writer's block lately and it sucks. I didn't want to leave you guys hanging for more than two days, so I struggled along and finished it.

PLEASE REVIEW! It might help inspire me again, hehe. Next chapter: the gang finds out about the crimson talisman! I'll be sure to add some fluff as well! : )

(points to Inuyasha and Kouga threateningly) Now you two are going to co-operate in the next chapter, riiiight?

Inuyasha: If we do, will you let us out of this damn dungeon?!

Perhaps.


	19. Chapter nineteen

Diclaimer: Inuyasha does not belong to me. If he did, I'd dress him in leather pants and keep that bandanna on his head just because he looks hot with it on. (Though you can bet your ass it'd come off when I wanted to rub those cute little ears!)

A/N: Man that last chapter sucked, so I wrote chapter nineteen as fast as I could! Yay! In the same night, yay!

(passes out cookies)

* * *

"Well," Shippo sighed. "Here we are again."

The group grumbled to themselves as they found themselves walking, yet again. Only this time, they goal wasn't a jewel shard. It was a sorcerer/stalker that Kagome had seemed to pick up in her era.

'But,' Kagome frowned. 'He seems to know an awful lot about Sengoku Jidai....and ourselves.'

The little group had waited until Kouga and Inuyasha had retained full use of their bodies, the effects of the powder long gone. Inuyasha had thrown a fit when Kagome went near Kouga to bandage his wound. Managing to calm him down with a nuzzle that didn't go unnoticed by the surprised wolf, she then set about wrapping the wound, ignoring the obviously gloating hanyou behind her.

"Inuyasha" Kagome sighed. "While I do appreciate the thought, you really don't need to carry me." She blushed slightly.

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted, wrapping his arms tighter around her shoulders and knees. He shifted his shoulder slightly so the wolf couldn't see her and glared at the rival male, who snarled back in response.

"Shall I go on?" Miroku raised his voice from the front of the group.

"Eh?" Kagome turned to look at the monk, who was walking with Sango and Shippo. Kirara mewed from her position in Sango's arms.

Miroku sighed. "I thought as much. You weren't listening."

"It's a little hard to hear you!" Kagome shouted back over the growling noises coming from both boys.

Miroku turned around, walking backwards and cupped his hands around his mouth. "I was retelling the legend of the crimson talisman!"

"Eh?" Inuyasha snapped to attention. "Crimson talisman? Isn't that what the sorcerer said he was after?"

"Very good, Inuyasha!" Miroku smiled. "Now can you please tell me what that big bright thing in the sky is?"

"The su-ggggrrrrr," Inuyasha snarled, flexing his claws. "Fucking monk!"

"Inuyasha!" Kagome jumped as she felt his claws scrape against her skin. Her face flushed unexpectedly and she blinked.

Sniffing at her scent, the hanyou was surprised to smell her arousal. He smirked, and dragged his claws against her thigh again, purposefully.

"Would you cut it out!" Kagome squealed, jumping slightly at the heat that pooled into her lower belly. She blushed harder and caught his hand in her own, effectively stopping him from doing it again.

Kouga growled menacingly, flexing his arm.

Inuyasha ignored him with a huff, and stomped on ahead to get closer to Miroku. "Start over," he interrupted the monk's conversation with Sango.

Miroku sighed, then complied. "The crimson talisman is very old, and believed to be thought a legend. It is said that many years ago a very powerful sorcerer came to these lands and began conquering villages, turning the villagers into mindless slaves."

"That's awful!" Kagome frowned. "Why'd he do that?"

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted. "Why does anybody seek power? To become the strongest, of course."

"You're a fine one to talk," Kagome narrowed her eyes at him.

"As I was saying," Miroku coughed lightly. "It was rumored in other villages that he was able to control everybody with the use of a talisman around his neck."

"Why is it called the 'crimson' talisman?" Shippo asked, entranced by the tale.

"Nobody is sure, but there are many different opinions on the subject," Miroku shrugged. "Some believe it's because when it is used, it glows a dark red color. Still, many others believe that the sorcerer created it out of the blood from an even more powerful being."

"It sounds questionable to me," Sango frowned. "It's only a legend?"

"Well, like all legends, there is always a bit of truth in them," Miroku held up a hand. "There is a village that guards a talisman known as the 'crimson talisman'."

"Is it the same one?" Kouga spoke up.

"That, I'm afraid, I don't know," Miroku shrugged. "But it's worth a try to get it before the sorcerer does, right?"

"Yeah," Shippo shivered. "Who knows what he'd do with it."

"Don't worry, Shippo," Kagome smiled encouragingly. "We'll stop him."

"I suppose the only good thing about this is that its given up on stalking you," Sango pointed out. "It appears to want the talisman now."

"Maybe that's why it was after me in the first place," Kagome shrugged, contemplating this new development. "It needed to pretend to be me to get down the well, right?"

"What I don't get is why it had to come back here to find the talisman," Inuyasha frowned. "Is it not in your time?"

Kagome blinked, then frowned. "I....don't know." She sighed. "If it was, the only way I could find out about it is in one of my myth texts." She glared up at Inuyasha. "And seeing as how I can barely go to class at all anymore...."

"Do you have the text with you?" He snapped back, ignoring her last comment.

"I don't know, it was in my backpack before," She shrugged. "Did you take it out when you packed it up?"

"I didn't take anything out," Inuyasha shook his head.

"Perhaps we should stop, then," Miroku suggested. "We could eat dinner and Kagome could search her text."

"Keh!" Inuyasha sniffed. "I'm not eating with wolf boy hanging around."

Kouga growled and cracked his knuckled. "At least _I _bathe," he muttered. "Disgusting dog."

"What was that?!" Inuyasha whipped around to face the wolf.

"Inuyasha," Kagome tugged on a forelock of hair. "Cut it out, already!"

"Hmph," Kouga crossed his arms defiantly, daring the hanyou to make the first move.

"Kougaaaa!" A voice called from over the hill.

"Eh?" Everybody turned to find Ginta, panting along and climbing the hill with slight difficulty.

"Yo," Kouga greeted his comrade. "Weren't you supposed to stay with the tribe while I was gone?" He glared at the shorter wolf demon.

"There," Ginta panted and came to a stop before his leader. "There's been a fight."

"What?" Kouga snapped. "Who was it?" he punched a nearby tree to vent his frustration.

"It wasn't an outsider, Kouga," Ginta quickly explained. "The pack has split in two, and are fighting each other."

"My god, I leave them alone for a day...." Kouga sighed heavily. Turning to Kagome, he reached forward and tried to clasp her hands, only to have Inuyasha yank her out of reach just in time.

"Er," Kagome glanced between the two glaring males. "What is it, Kouga?"

"Kagome, as much as I'd love to continue on and kill your offender, I must return to my pack and get things back to normal."

"That's fine," Kagome smiled. "I hope everything is alright. Thanks for your help so far."

"I will return," he promised, and turned on his heel to speed away, with Ginta huffing and running behind him at a much slower pace.

"Good riddance!" Inuyasha shouted as a final insult.

Kagome growled and tugged on his hair again. "Let me down, you jerk."

Inuyasha growled back and held her tighter. "No," He said defiantly, and walked over to where the others already had camp set up.

"Goddamnit Inuyasha!" Kagome snapped, "I can walk on my own!"

Inuyasha leaned down and bit her shoulder roughly. "Shut up," he muttered and walked past the camp. "Kagome wants water," he said in passing at their questioning glances. "We'll be back."

"What th-mmppphh," Kagome's eyes widened as Inuyasha's hand clamped over her mouth. He shifted her so he could carry her one-armed and continued on through the forest, sniffing at the air occasionally until they came across a hot spring.

Eyes glistening in bliss, Kagome stared at the scene and sighed sweetly, completely forgetting her anger at the hanyou. Falling lack in his arms, she forgot herself for a moment before trying to wriggle out of his grasp.

He complied with her efforts, setting her down on her feet and removing his hand from her mouth. "Now what was that about walking on your own?" He asked her, eyebrow raised.

"Thank you," she leaned forward and gave him a quick hug before turning back to the heavenly scene before her.

"Not yet," Inuyasha reached out and hooked a finger in her collar to stop her from taking another step. "I want you to do something for me first."

"Eh?" Kagome turned her head, looking at him over her shoulder. "What?"

"Remember back in your room- aghh!" Inuyasha yelped as Kagome flicked his ear angrily. "What the fuck was that for?!" He screamed at her.

"You pervert!" She flushed and snapped back at him.

"Wh-Not that!" Inuyasha shouted. "When you were telling me how you were going to tell Kouga to piss of the next time he came around!" He leaned in closer to her face angrily. "What the hell happened to that brilliant plan?"

"Oh," Kagome fiddled with her fingers. "Well.....eh...."

Inuyasha swallowed and forced himself not to blink. "You _want_ him to keep trying to court you?"

"NO!" She shouted back at him. "I just....looking at his face, I don't think I could tell him to stay away, Inuyasha. He's my friend."

"The hell he is!" Inuyasha growled. "He's a threat and a rival male! As your mate, I'm telling you to stay away from him!" He crossed his arms. There, he laid down the law, and she would comply.

"We're not even full mates!" Kagome yelled back, and he snarled at her, causing her to yelp and jump back in surprise.

"Don't even try and get out of it! You're mine, damnit!" Inuyasha reached out and grabbed hold of her arms, yanking her closer to him.

"I'm not," she kept her voice low, trying to convince him on her sincerity. "I just don't want you to tell me who I can keep as a friend, and who I can't." Feeling his arms tense around her arms, she nuzzled his chin. "Please calm down, we've had a rough day as it is, and I can't take anymore stress."

Huffing, Inuyasha forced himself to calm his grip. "Until you're marked, I don't want you near him," he told her again, firmly this time.

"Marked?" Kagome looked up at him. "What do you mean?"

"When inu youkai mate, males usually mark their females to show other males that she's been claimed," Inuyasha explained as best as he could. "The marking usually happens during mating."

"Mark? As in....?" Kagome trailed off in a questioning manner.

"It's a scar," Inuyasha replied quickly.

"From a bite?" She blinked when he nodded.

"Can it happen outside of mating?" Kagome asked.

"Err," He blushed lightly. "I guess it could. Why?"

"Then mark me," She told him, her matter-of-fact attitude nearly causing him to choke and have a heart attack.

She wanted him to mark her? Right now?

_Do it! _The youkai danced with glee inside his head. His human side, however, was slightly more indecisive.

"Ehh," he shifted from one foot to the other. "I don't think....this is....."

Watching his emotions run from one to the other across his face, Kagome smiled lightly and decided to make the decision for him. She leaned up on her toes and pressed her lips against his in a light, chaste kiss.

Startled by the turn of events, Inuyasha couldn't help but reach out and pull her tightly against his chest, leaning into the kiss. He marveled at the concept that they could just reach for each other and kiss like they were now.

He felt his heart lurch and deepened the kiss, not wanting to let go of the one who accepted him, who loved him.

Sensing the desperation behind the kiss, Kagome reached up and rubbed his ears softly in a slow, circular pattern, trying to calm him down. It helped a little, and a low rumble started in his chest.

Leaning back slightly, Inuyasha gazed hungrily at her swollen lips and leaned back in for a quick kiss. Moving across her cheek, he nuzzled the side of it softly before leaning down and dropping a kiss on her shoulder.

Kagome's arms automatically came up and wrapped themselves around his neck, pressing her breasts against his chest and nearly whimpering as he nipped the skin on the side of her neck teasingly.

Inuyasha smirked and brought his claws up her back, sliding under her uniform top and lightly scratching up to her shoulder blades. He gave a small noise of appreciation when she shuddered against him, her arousing scent getting stronger.

He didn't want to take this too far, but he did want to distract her in some way so that he could take her mind off the pain. To tell the truth, he wasn't sure if he was doing it right, but he was moving on instinct and that was good enough for him.

Kissing and sucking lightly on the skin near the junction of her neck, he was pleased to hear a moan escape his mate's lips. Grasping her hips lightly, he leaned back and caught her as they both fell back to the forest floor.

Landing in a seated position, Inuyasha quickly rearranged their limbs so that Kagome was seated in his lap, her legs wrapped around his hips comfortably. She moaned and tried to rub up against him, but he held a hand on her hip, effectively stopping her.

"Not now," he told her and went back to his ministrations on the side of her neck.

Kagome nodded and reached up to rub his ears. He growled against the side of her neck and brought his hand up from her hip to reach under her top. Kagome jumped as his hand made contact with her stomach. "Tickles," she explained at his questioning glance.

"Ticklish, eh?" An evil gleam in his eye gave her a seconds warning before she was thrown to the ground on her back and Inuyasha climbed above her, his hands mercilessly attacking her stomach.

"No! Ack!" She squealed, trying to wriggle away from his hands. "IIInuuyaashhhaa!" She pleaded, all the while laughing heartily.

He leaned forward and bit her shoulder quickly, pleased that she was so distracted that she barely felt the pain as he sunk his fangs into her soft skin. A gasp escaped her lips once the giggles died down. Inuyasha lapped at the few drops of blood and leaned back, pleased to see his mark on her shoulder.

A sense of male youkai pride coursed through him and he could feel his chest puffing out. He was one step closer to having Kagome as a full mate, and his youkai side was growling possessively inside his mind. She was claimed now. She was his.

An indescribable emotion rushed through his body and he smiled. Eyes bright, he turned his gaze to Kagome, who was reaching up to feel the mark.

"That's it?" She asked, frowning.

"What the fuck do you mean, 'that's it'," He roared in her face, ego deflated. "I just marked you, you ignorant bitch!"

"Ahh," Kagome held up her hands. "Gomen, I just thought it'd be much more painful."

Inuyasha felt his anger drain away all at once. "No, that's it," he told her. Glancing from the mark to her face, he looked away. "You regretting it yet?"

Startled, Kagome looked up at his face, only to find him looking the other direction. Lifting her hands, she slowly guided his face to where she could look him in the eye. "I will never regret being with you," she told him honestly. "I still can't believe you want to be with me," she gave a nervous chuckle.

Inuyasha felt his breath catch in his throat before forcing a smirk. "Keh! You're stuck with me now, so it's not like I have a choice."

Kagome smiled. "Stop acting tough, you moron."

"Bitch," he snapped half-heartedly.

"Possessive jerk," Kagome retorted back lightly.

"Keh! You want your bath or not?" Inuyasha stood, holding out a hand to help her up, which she received gratefully.

"More than ever," she sighed. "It's been a long day," she moaned and rubbed her eyes.

"Hurry up," he told her. "You still have to look at your text," he reminded her.

"What about dinner?" Kagome frowned.

"Ramen," Inuyasha grunted and began walking away.

Kagome narrowed her eyes at him. "Ramen _please?_" She replied tightly.

"Ramen!" He shouted back just to irk her.

"Jerk!"

* * *

Ah hah! And my writing abilities return in the same night! Huzzah! It's a beautiful day.

PLEASE REVIIEWWW! I'm begging you! (holds out a platter of cookies) Enjoy!


	20. Chapter twenty

Disclaimer: There once lived a hanyou named Inuyasha, who grew up at the edge of the forest. Sadly, little did the hanyou know, but he was branded in the form of a tattoo on his ass. Forever will the name "Rumiko Takahashi" be imbedded upon his skin. What he can't figure out is why......

A/N: Tah hah! Chapter 20! Yay!

Sorry it took so long, I was busy writing 'At The Worst Possible Moment', another Inuyasha fanfic. Go Read it. Now.

As I said in the beginning of that little short story, the muse took away my ability to write Chapter 20 until I wrote ATWPM. Sad, sad day for me.

But good for you! You can read it AND chapter 20 now. Yay!

(passes out cookies)

* * *

"Did you find it yet?"

Kagome tore off the edge of the page she was turning as her body jerked upright in anger. Shaking it aside and putting on the best convincing smile that she could, Kagome turned to the hovering hanyou.

"Inuyasha?" She asked sweetly.

"Yeah?" He blinked.

"Come here," she beckoned him closer with a smile and waited until he was inches from her face before yanking on a forelock of silver hair. "For the last time, NO!" She shouted into his ear as loud as she could.

"Aaghhh!" Inuyasha jerked back, cradling his ringing ear. "Fucking bitch!" he swore under his breath.

"Perhaps it would be best to leave Kagome alone for a bit," Miroku commented as he stirred around the embers in the fire.

"It's been hours!" Inuyasha complained. "How hard can it be to find one freaking talisman?"

"Do you understand the concept of an index?" Kagome glared at him, turning another page angrily. "This book doesn't have one, I have to go through every page and skim through all of it."

"It's taking forever!" Inuyasha waved his hand in the air angrily.

"Okay then," Kagome raised an eyebrow, an evil glint in her eye. She pushed one of her history texts towards him. "Go ahead and help me."

Inuyasha snarled at her, furious that she would throw the fact that he couldn't read into his face like that in front of the group. "Hell no!" He shouted. "This is _your_ job, just hurry the fuck up!" He huffed and crossed his arms, turning away from the offending book.

"Oh, I'm the group researcher now?" She retorted back, stressed over the fact that it was taking forever to find anything on the talisman. The group ate dinner ages ago, and Kagome herself had sipped on noodles while absently skimming the first part of her book.

Now, hours later, it was getting dark and she was only halfway through the massive text. What little light she had earlier was now completely gone, and her only light source was the dying fire.

Despite Inuyasha's earlier claims of not taking anything out of her pack when he grabbed it from her time, Kagome could not find the handy flashlight that she always kept in there. Quite frankly, she was almost as worried about that as much as reading the text. Knowing her luck, she'd go home to find something on the news about a recently discovered flashlight dug up from the ruins of an old village in feudal times.

"Kagomeeee," Shippo laid his head across her knee, hoping for pity points. "I'm getting tired, can we go to bed yet?"

"Don't even think about it," Sango cracked open one eye to glare at the monk who was preparing to shift over and ask the exact same question, albeit a little more perverted.

"Not yet, Shippo," Kagome shook her head sadly. "In a little bit," she promised. "I need to read this before the fire dies out."

"Keh!" Inuyasha started to stand. "Is that all you're worried about? Hell, I'll get some more wood and then you can read all night."

"O-SU-WA-RI!!" Kagome shouted and watched almost gleefully as the hanyou came crashing back down to the ground. "I am getting some sleep tonight, even if I have to 'it' you all night!" She yelled desperately, her eyelids heavy from reading too much. "I can barely keep my eyes open as it is, you insensitive jerk!"

"Hey, let's not fight," Sango sighed from across the fire, curled up with a larger Kirara. "We have enough troubles right now; let's not add to them."

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted lightly, only now noticing the dark shadows under Kagome's eyes. He guiltily picked himself up from the ground and made sure Miroku and Sango weren't looking before reaching out and taking away the book from her lap.

"Wha-?" She stupidly looked up at him, her sandpaper eyes seeking out Inuyasha. She blinked and rubbed them gently, trying to work some moisture into them. "Mmnnh...." She moaned pathetically when it wasn't working.

"You can finish tomorrow," He said in a low voice, sliding the book back into her backpack. He scooted over so that she would have room to put her sleeping bag down next to him. "Sleep," he told her.

Kagome blinked in confusion, trying to figure out what had changed his opinion. "I thought you said I wasn't working hard enough," she said grumpily before reaching for her sleeping bag.

Inuyasha shrugged, trying to appear indifferent. "If you're up all night, you can't read the damn book in the morning. You can't read or sense the shikon shards if you're passed out unconscious," he snorted.

Rolling out her sleeping bag, she frowned a bit before giving him a light smile. "Thank you."

"For what?" He turned to her and frowned.

"For caring, despite the obvious harsh attitude," she said simply before tucking both herself and a sleeping Shippo into the covers. She settled her head close to his leg and blushed when she realized how close she was to him.

Before she could move away, Inuyasha stretched his leg over the corner of the sleeping bag, effectively pinning it down. "Sleep," he ordered again, leaning against the tree behind him.

"Night," she muttered , closing her eyes and cuddling into her warm covers.

Across the fire, two pairs of surprised eyes blinked and turned to stare at each other. Unfortunately, the surprised atmosphere was ruined with a glare and a slap as Miroku tried to fondle Sango's hip.

"What the hell is going on?" Sango whispered furiously, turning back to the cozy scene a few feet away from her.

"I should develop quicker reflexes." Miroku mumbled absently as he rubbed the injured skin on his cheek.

"Miroku.....d-do you think?" She jerked her head in their direction.

"That Inuyasha is acting less gruff with Kagome than usual?" Miroku finished for her, stroking his chin in a contemplative way. "No.....no I don't think he is."

"Well, he seems to feel guilty about it afterwards," Sango pointed out in a whisper.

"Guilty?" Miroku frowned, recalling all the times he was hit over the head by the hanyou. "Is he capable of such emotion?"

Sango whacked his arm. "Would you cut it out and answer the question?"

Miroku sighed, wishing once again for the ability to move away before the punch came. "I think he is being a tad more affectionate towards Kagome, yes."

"And you don't find that at all strange?" She raised an eyebrow in question.

"Sango, I think it's quite obvious that he's held feelings for her all along," Miroku replied. "The fact that he is now acting out such emotions hardly surprises me."

"Really?" Sango asked, eyebrow raised.

"Well....it _is _a bit concerning," he admitted with a sheepish grin. "I mean, this is the very same hanyou who is always yelling and swearing an-,"

_Whack! _

"You got somethin' to say to me?" Inuyasha glared at the monk who was sprawled out on the ground and clenched his fist.

"Ahh, no, of course not," Miroku smiled convincingly and held his hands up sheepishly in front of his face. "Sango and I were just discussing the weather."

Inuyasha snorted. "Get to sleep, monk," he growled and moved back to the other side of the fire.

Miroku sighed dramatically. "You see the trouble you get me into?" He pouted to Sango.

"You get yourself into trouble," she snorted and raised an eyebrow. "I was keeping my voice in a whisper."

"Ohh, is that why?" Miroku grinned. "I thought you were simply trying to set a romantic mood for the two of us."

Sango's eyebrow twitched in annoyance and she turned her back on him in a huff, settling down to sleep.

"Goodnight Sango," Miroku called out cheerfully.

"Don't even think about groping me tonight!" She called back.

"Too late," Inuyasha grumbled as he watched Sango deck him once again for grabbing her butt.

* * *

Inuyasha waited until long after he was sure everybody was asleep before throwing the last block of wood into the dying fire, trying to keep it alive for a little while longer.

It had taken quite a while for Sango and Miroku to finally quiet down. Once they had both found a comfortable sleeping position, Miroku would slowly inch toward Sango, who, in turn, would quickly scoot away. After a long, drawn-out sigh, Miroku eventually gave up and they both fell into an easy sleep.

Quietly, so as not to disturb the sleeping pair next to him, Inuyasha slid his hand under Kagome's head. Lifting her easily, he scooted closer and allowed her head to be pillowed by his thigh.

Not to be nice or anything, of course. He just couldn't stand the fact that his tama detector was lying on a cold, hard surface.

_I thought we were past this 'tama detector' title. The word is 'mate', say it with me, _his human side said patronizingly in his head.

'Ah, stuff it,' he whispered aloud, bringing his hand up to absently stroke the side of her neck with his thumb. He growled possessively when she shivered and unconsciously moved closer to his hand.

Running his fingers over her mark, he inwardly winced as he pressed down a little too hard on the slight wound. The bite mark was starting to scab over, he realized with a frown.

The youkai in him urged him forward, and working on instinct, he carefully moved her head to the side. Pausing a moment to make sure she was completely asleep, he moved forward again and began lapping gently at the wound.

He moved over it with feather-light touches, softening up the blood in a way that wouldn't hurt her or wake her up. After a particular lap, the clot was gone and fresh blood started oozing slowly from the flesh. With sure strokes, he kept lapping at the wound until he was positive it wasn't bleeding anymore. He leaned back to stare at the white tissue that would later become a scar.

_Mate, _his youkai side practically purred in his mind.

"My mate," Inuyasha corrected aloud. His. Nobody else's. That indescribable feeling rose up in his chest once again, his heart constricting with emotion as he stared down at the pale figure lying in his lap.

Was it relief? Happiness? He shook his head in confusion. Whatever the hell it was, it urged him to get some sleep. Tomorrow he'd get up early and hunt. His youkai side was telling him that the kit and his mate needed the nourishment, while his human side reminded him that Sango and Miroku would be hungry too.

'What an odd pack we are,' he thought to himself as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

She was from what?

She turned back over her shoulder and gasped in horror as the entire village was chasing her, torches lit and weapons at the ready.

But why? What did she do wrong?

"Demon!" One of them spat from behind her, the vicious voice cutting into her heart. "Demon!"

'But I'm not!' She wanted to scream at them. 'I didn't mean to! I can't control it!'

"DEMON!" "KILL IT!" "SHOW YOUR TRUE FORM!"

She cried out as a myriad of angry, bitter voices started echoing around her, each one driving a little knife deeper and deeper into her heart. 'Why?' She cried. 'Why do they hate me?'

She stumbled over a rock and her wildly pumping legs faltered, throwing her off balance. Her arms wailed about frantically, trying to find some sort of surface with which to steady herself, but grasped only thin air.

Wailing, she fell down to the ground, blood spurting form her knee as a sharp rock imbedded itself within her flesh.

No, no....any minute they would be upon her. Any minute they would kill her....

"DEMON!"

* * *

Kagome gasped as she awoke, jerking her body into an upright position with a strangled cry. She fought with the covers for a bit as she tried to frantically pull herself free.

"Kagome-sama?" Miroku blinked in surprise from his position at the fire, cooking what appeared to be meat.

She shook her head and panted, not wishing to discuss or explain anything. Tears welled up in her eyes and she scanned around the camp, frightened. The one thing she needed wasn't there. Sobbing, she fell into a crouch and held onto her knees tightly.

"Kagome?" Sango stood and rushed over to her, placing a worried hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"Kagome?" Shippo asked from his place next to the sleeping bag. "Kagome?"

"Kagome?" Miroku half-stood in his place, glancing worriedly at the crying girl.

Kagome ignored them all, trying to erase the feelings from the dream. Right.....a dream, she told herself. All a dream.

"Would you guys stop gawking over her like idiots?"

A pair of hands came down and lifted her easily to her feet, turning her around so that she could face the speaker.

"What's wrong?" Inuyasha asked gruffly, sniffing her over for any wounds. Nearly gagging at the scent of extreme fear, his instincts took over and he immediately wrapped the girl up into a secure embrace.

Relieved, Kagome grasped onto his haori and buried her face into it, taking deep breaths. His scent helped calm her down, the unique mix of forest and light sweat a soothing and comforting smell. After a pause, her pounding hear began to calm somewhat, and she leaned heavily into the hanyou, spent.

Growling in a comforting manner, Inuyasha ran his chin over the top of her head in a quick nuzzle. "What the fuck happened?" He looked over her to glare at the members of the group.

"Nothing," Sango shook her head. "She woke up startled and started crying." Worried, she tried to take a step to comfort her friend.

Inuyasha snarled and moved Kagome out of reach from the demon slayer. "Wait!" He ordered her.

Startled, Sango blinked and took a step back. "What's wrong?"

'What's wrong?' Inuyasha thought to himself. 'What's wrong is that my mate is hurt and crying, that's what's wrong! My instincts are going crazy at the scent of fear and I feel like hurting someone, that's what's wrong!' He growled and buried his face into her hair, knowing that her scent would calm him down eventually.

Breathing deeply, he allowed her scent to wash over his and soothe him. He nuzzled the top of her head one more time. As he was doing so a small voice caught the attention of her ears, and they strained forward to try and hear it more clearly.

"Dream....it was horrible," Kagome mumbled into his haori.

Relief rushed through his veins and he almost fell back as his tense muscles turned to jelly. "Is that the reason you were scared?" He asked her in a low voice. "You took years off my life, bitch, it had better be for good reason." He mock-threatened in a growl.

"Was it a dream?" Miroku asked, coming closer to them.

"Aa," He nodded and rolled his eyes, loosening his grip on Kagome ever so slightly. "Bitch here was scared over thing."

"It wasn't nothing!" Kagome snapped and brushed away a tear with a shaky hand.

"What was it about?" Sango asked, stepping forward and placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"I was running away from these villagers," Kagome explained in a low voice, her hands covering her face for a moment before returning back to her sides. "They were screaming 'demon' at me and were trying to kill me."

"Fuck," Inuyasha swore. "Are you that worried about associating with hanyous and demons?" He demanded, taking a step forward. Inside, he held very still. What if she regretted agreeing to be his mate? Is that why she dreamt that particular scenario?

"No," Kagome reached out and took his hand, grasping it in both of hers. "It wasn't like that."

"Then what the fuck was it like?!" He shouted angrily.

"Calm down, Inuyasha," Miroku gave him a sharp look and jangled his staff meaningfully.

"In my dream, it was as if I was someone totally different," Kagome tried to explain quickly, lest Inuyasha get the wrong idea again. "I was someone else."

"Who?" Sango asked, frowing.

Kagome shook her head. "I don't know."

"So it was only a dream, then," Miroku relaxed somewhat. "You feel better now?" He asked her in a calm voice.

"No, Miroku," Kagome shook her head frantically. "I don't think it was a dream." She looked at him with a pleading look in her eyes, trying to convey an unspoken message.

He caught it, and took a step forward, concerned. "You think it was...."

She nodded. "Yes."

"What?" Inuyasha snapped, looking between the two.

"Well, I suppose it could have been.....it is very likely, considering you're a miko," Miroku spoke aloud almost to himself.

Inuyasha snapped and grabbed the monk by the front of his robes. "What the fuck are you going on about!?" He shouted into his face.

Miroku blinked. "We believe that Kagome's scare wasn't a dream at all."

"Then it was....?" Sango trailed off.

"Yes," Miroku nodded. "A vision."

* * *

(sighs in relief)...I finally got it done. I KNOW this chapter sucks, you guys, and I'm sorry for that. Like I said before, my muse left me and I struggled along with this chapter, badly.

Have some cookies and PLEASE REVIEW or the next chapter miiiight take a while....I need more reviews to spur on the old imagination, truly I do!

I promise the stalker factor is still here, in fact, it's going to be in the next chapter.

**NEXT CHAPTER: THE STALKER ATTACKS KAGOME!!**


	21. Chapter twenty one

Disclaimer: Inuyasha does not belong to me, and that makes me sad. You don't want to make me sad do you? (pulls away plate of cookies threateningly)

A/N: Whew....okay, hopefully this chapter is better than the last. Thanks for all the reviews and support, you guys really make my day.

To answer some questions: Yes, I know this story has taken an unexpected turn from stalker to sorcerer. But this is what I had planned all along (shrugs) The stalker factor is still here, and it still wants to take away Kagome. I'm sorry if that surprises anyone, but the characters just seem to have a mind of their own when I'm typing.

I'm hoping this chapter will clear a lot of other things out, as well.

THANKS FOR THE SUPPORT SO FAR! : )

* * *

"So where exactly is this village?" Sango asked over her shoulder as Kirara carried her, Miroku, and Shippo across the skies. Kagome was, as usual, being carried on Inuyasha's back. Looking down at her friend, Sango could see that she had fallen asleep there, and with good reason. From what houshi-sama told her, visions tend to wear one out quite a bit.

"It should be at least two more days if we keep up this pace," Miroku replied, scooting a little closer to her.

"Did you catch that, Inuyasha?" Sango called down to the hanyou. She didn't want to risk waking Kagome, but Inuyasha would want to know how much farther they had to travel.

"Aa," He nodded, keeping his voice low enough so that Kagome wouldn't wake. "There's only one more day's worth of food in Kagome's pack," he reminded them.

"So we have food for today and that's it?" Shippo cried out, hungry already at the mention of their lack of food.

"It looks like my services will be needed at the next town," Miroku remarked casually, patting the ofuda in his robe.

"I never thought I'd say this," Sango sighed heavily, already regretting her next words. "But could you possibly find a really rich home? I think we all need a bath tonight."

"Don't I always, Sango?" Miroku smiled at her.

"No, you don't understand," Sango held a hand in front of her nose and scooted forward a bit. "We _all _need a bath tonight."

Frowning, Miroku sniffed at his robe. "Do I offend? I took a wash at the stream this morning...."

"Yeah, but did you see the color of the water?" Shippo spoke up, leaping onto Miroku's shoulder. "It looked gross."

"Yes, well...." Sango trailed off, scanning the area below her for a village. "I think after a bath, we'll all feel much better."

"It's getting late," Miroku pointed out. The sun had already fallen behind the horizon, leaving behind a crimson trail in its wake.

"Yeah, we'd better find something quick," Sango urged Kirara to go faster, and began scanning left and right for smoke trails rising up out of the trees, a sign that indicated an occupied village.

"Inuyasha!" Shippo called down to the hanyou suddenly. "I think I smell humans up ahead!"

Inuyasha nodded, secretly proud of the kit for tracking all by himself. "Keh! You should have caught onto that five minutes ago!" He shouted back up to him, not wanting it to go to his head.

"I did, you jerk!" Shippo stuck his tongue out at Inuyasha and settled back down in between Sango and Miroku, indignant.

"Up ahead, eh?" Sango squinted. "Alright, let's go Kirara."

Inuyasha sped after them, keeping his leaps light enough for the sleeping girl on his back. Upon seeing the rather large village up ahead, he reluctantly tried to wake her.

"Kagome?" He spoke softly over his shoulder. "Wake up."

No response.

He growled in annoyance. "Wake up, you stupid bitch," he said again, harsher this time and slowly drew his claws lightly over the skin under her thigh.

She snapped awake, unaware of her surrounding at first. Grasping onto his shoulders a little tighter, she began carefully looking around. "Where are we?" She asked sleepily, reaching up to try and rub the heavy feeling away from her eyelids.

"We're near a village," Inuyasha replied. "Miroku's gonna do one of his famous exorcisms again," he spat, annoyed over the fact that the monk was providing for the group, and not him, the leader.

"Why?" Kagome frowned against his back. "Is he getting tired of sleeping on the ground already?"

"No, Sango wants us all to take a bath," Inuyasha snorted.

"Hmm," she replied, not fully awake yet. "She's right, I think we all need it," she yawned.

"Keh! Are you saying I smell?" He asked angrily over his shoulder. "Trust me, if anyone smells bad here, it's you humans."

Fumbling around, Kagome managed to reach around him, hugging his chest from the back. An impromptu hug, yes, but also a better hold for her against his angry leaping. "No, you smell nice," she teasingly repeated his long ago words.

"Keh!" He sniffed. "Of course I do!"

She giggled at his proud statement and turned her attentions to the village. Almost immediately, a feeling of unease slipped over her. Groaning lightly, she buried her face into Inuyasha's haori. "Are you sure we should stay here tonight?"

"Why?" He asked over his shoulder.

"I've....got a weird feeling about it," she reluctantly admitted and looked over his shoulder once again at the innocent looking village.

"What the hell are you worried about?" He asked her harshly. "I've protected you from countless demons, but one little village is creeping you out?"

"I guess...." She trailed off, still looking at the village with apprehension.

"Calm down," He snorted, coming to a stop close to the village and setting her down carefully on her feet. "We're almost there."

Kirara also set down her passengers and the little group walked into the village, trying to convey a sense of normalcy. Well....as much as one could with a dog-eared boy, a fox kit and a neko-youkai in the group.

One of the villagers looked up from what he was doing and smiled welcomingly at the group. They smiled back, but his gaze quickly ran over to Inuyasha.

"DEMON!" He shouted at the group, then back to the rest of the village. A collective shriek went up among the women in town, and nearly everybody scurried away, looking on with fear.

The man's cry was a little too close to the one in her dream, and Kagome shivered lightly as she dug though her yellow backpack. Quickly pulling out the cloth, she tied it around Inuyasha's head before he could protest.

"Wh-," He glared at her. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" He asked her in a furious whisper as they continue on through the crowded village.

"Maybe it's best if they don't know you're hanyou," she whispered back.

"They've already seen!" He ground out, waving his hands in the air angrily.

"Only a few of them," she replied reasonably. "The rest won't see anything, right? What are they going to believe? What they see, or what they've heard from a couple of people?"

"Oh yes, and this fucking piece of cloth is going to make up for my claws and fangs," He snarled at her.

"Not to mention your hair and eyes," Kagome pressed a finger to her chin contemplating the problem. "Oh well!" She beamed at him suddenly. "I guess you're a foreigner, eh?"

"Foreigner, my ass," Inuyasha grumbled, furious over the fact that she wanted to hide what he was.

"Calm down, Inuyasha," Miroku called back over his shoulder. "It would be best if we want to secure lodgings for the night."

He huffed and crossed his arms, turning his head away. "Whatever," he snorted. "Lets just go."

"Inuyasha?" Kagome leaned closer to him, sensing his unspoken hurt. "You do know we're not ashamed of you, right?" She looked up at him with doleful eyes.

"Keh!" He snorted, indifferent. But inside, he felt relieved enough to nudge her hand with his own.

Smiling widely at him, she linked her finger with his under the confines of his haori sleeve, not wanting to draw too much attention to them. During these times, it wasn't really normal for public affection to be shown. Though Miroku seemed to have no problem with it, she frowned to herself. But then again, he was a lecher....and groping couldn't really be considered affection, right?

"Ahh, yes," Miroku frowned dramatically, bringing her back to the present. "I see an evil spirit over that place right there," he pointed to the lord's place.

Sango nearly tripped. "I said rich, not majestic!" She whispered furiously under her breath.

"But my dear Sango," Miroku turned to her with an innocent look. "I cannot help which places the evil spirits are drawn to, they _do _have minds of their own, you know."

"Your manipulative hands have a mind of their own," Inuyasha muttered murderously.

"Perhaps you should exorcise _them,_" Sango muttered, eyebrow lifted.

"Well, if you feel that we don't need a hot meal and a bath...." Miroku trailed off meaningfully.

"NO!" Both women shouted at once, causing nearly every villager in the area to turn with surprised looks at the small group.

"Er....I mean," Sango glanced nervously at the curious villagers. "If you sense an evil spirit, who am I to contend?" She laughed nervously, threatening under her breath to kill Miroku if he said anything perverted.

"Ahh, yes," Miroku nodded sagely. "A beautiful lady such as yourself should not concern yourself with evil spirits. Do not fear," he leaned in closer, placing a hand on her backside. "As a monk, it is my duty to protect you from such beings."

Many of the women villagers giggled at the display, and the men shook their heads, returning to their work.

"I....will.....kill.....you," Sango bit out under her breath, her entire face turning purple due to unwanted attention.

"After our bath?" Miroku grinned widely.

"_Our bath?!_" She shrieked and slapped him as his hand squeezed her backside teasingly.

Kagome heaved a sigh. "I have a bad feeling about this."

* * *

Despite the monk's earlier dramatic behavior, he was able to don a serious face and convince the lord that an evil spirit was indeed hanging over his palace. The lord, superstitious by nature, ordered him to exorcise the evil and demanded that he take in payment full lodgings for the night.

Miroku happily set about the 'exorcism' while a servant rushed forward to show the others to the rooms. Inuyasha tensed and nearly had a fit when he saw that they were given two rooms, one for the men and the other for the women. Pleading with her eyes, Kagome finally got him to calm down, but she could tell by the bright fire in his eyes that she'd hear about his displeasure later on once the servant was out of ear shot.

Now shown to their rooms, the servant bowed low and told them that dinner would be served shortly. She apologized for their private meal, but reminded them that it was late and the lord had already feasted with his family earlier on in the evening.

"That's alright," Kagome smiled to the young girl. "We don't mind at all. Thank you for your help," she gave a quick bow, which the girl returned, lower than her own.

Inuyasha waited until the girl had rounded around the corner before turning angrily to an expectant Kagome. "Two rooms?" He shouted. "Two?!"

"Shh," She frowned and held a finger to her lips. "What do you expect? None of us are married, so it's only proper that we get separate rooms."

"You're not sleeping alone," he huffed and crossed his arms.

"You're right," Kagome nodded, and he let out a breath of relief. "I'll be with Sango."

"What?!" Inuyasha snapped, angry over the fact that she didn't get his meaning. "No! You're sleeping with me!"

"Osuwari!" Kagome gasped and watched as he went crashing down. "Watch how you say things! People will get the wrong idea!" She whispered furiously to him.

"I think they might be more entertaining than the monk," Sango commented absently to Shippo, who was perched on her shoulder.

"Uh huh," he nodded, watching the scene before him avidly.

"Meew," Kirara called out from her perch on Sango's other shoulder.

"Inuyasha, it'll be alright," Sango took a step forward. "I'll be with her, so you don't need to worry."

"And your room is right next to ours!" Kagome pointed out as the angry hanyou picked himself up. "What could possibly happen that you couldn't hear?"

"Keh!" Inuyasha crossed his arms. "We usually only get one room when the monk does this," he muttered rebelliously.

"Don't worry," Kagome took a step forward and rubbed his sleeve. "It'll be alright. The rooms aren't a mile away," she laughed nervously.

He snorted, then turned away. "Fine, I don't care," he huffed.

"Arigato," Kagome beamed at him.

"Keh. Whatever," he shrugged.

* * *

"Mmm, that bath felt sooo good," Sango sighed, rubbing her shoulder as they entered their room. "And it would have been perfect if the lecher hadn't shown up," she glared murderously at the wall that separated their rooms.

"Well, it really wasn't their fault," Kagome pointed out. "Inuyasha said that the servant had told them where the bath was, but failed to mention it was being used."

"They should have known better!" Sango retorted, adjusting her borrowed yukata.

A fine blush spread across Kagome's cheeks. "I guess," she mumbled, remembering Inuyasha's face as they both entered the bath at the same time she and Sango were getting out. Both girls could only blink and stare in surprise for a moment, giving both boys a good, long look.

Inuyasha was the first to react, growling and throwing a hand over the monk's eyes as he turned to look at Kagome. He muttered his excuse-the servant's fumble-and left without a word, dragging the protesting monk in tow.

She could still feel his heated stare on her body and she shivered involuntarily.

"You alright?" Sango asked, concerned. "Are you cold?"

"Yeah," Kagome chuckled nervously and changed into her pj's. "We'd better get some sleep. Inuyasha will want to leave early tomorrow."

"He can wait until after breakfast," Sango replied. "I'm not going another day without a proper morning meal."

"I agree," Shippo called out from his curled up position in Kagome's futon. "He's getting cranky lately," he added.

"That's because he's angry over the fact that we haven't caught the sorcerer yet," Kagome explained, scooting down into the futon. "He's also upset that he can't get a scent trail."

"Well, he shouldn't take it out on us," Shippo complained, yawning widely.

Kagome chuckled. "Go to sleep, Shippo."

"Night Kagome," he replied sleepily.

"Happy dreams," Sango muttered from her futon, already half-asleep.

"Night Sango," Kagome smiled back at her friend. "Goodnight," she called out in the direction of the wall.

An answering thump came back. "Go to sleep, wench!"

Kagome sighed. "Sweet dreams to you too, Inuyasha!"

"Keh!"

* * *

Kagome was in the middle of the most wonderful, erotic dream when she was rudely shaken awake.

"Kagome, wake up."

She groaned and rolled over onto her back, glaring at the hanyou above her. "What?" She yawned widely, covering her mouth with her free hand.

"Shh!" He pressed his fingers to her lips and she felt the heat in her stomach rise again at the intimate touch.

Eyebrows raised, Inuyasha glanced at her midsection and sniffed the air meaningfully. A blush rose prettily on her face as he glanced up at her with heated eyes and a knowing smirk.

"Come here," he gestured her forward and helped disentangle both the kit and the covers from her side. He waited until she was standing before lightly shoving her in the general direction of the door.

"Where are we going?" She asked in a whisper once they had left the room.

"You'll see," he promised and placed a hand on her back, guiding her down the hall.

It was a little too dark for Kagome to see properly, so she trusted Inuyasha not to lead her into any walls. She knew that his superior hanyou senses allowed him to see better in the dark than most humans.

A light at the end of the hall shone through a shoji screen, and Kagome blinked to get her eyes used to it. "Are we going outside?" She asked him, glancing up at his determined face.

"Aa," he gave her a quick nod and slid the door open with ease.

Looking out at the forest scenery past the garden, Kagome realized that they had exited out the back of the palace. She frowned and looked around curiously as they walked past the beautiful garden and entered into the woods with seemingly quick, sure strides.

"Uhm," she hesitantly slowed her pace to a stop once they were surrounded by trees. "Where _are _we going?" She asked yet again, wondering what the hell had gotten into Inuyasha.

Her answer was a gentle brush of claws against the skin on her lower back. Shivering, she stiffened away from the touch reluctantly. "What was that for?" She demanded, half-hoping he would repeat the arousing action.

"I...." He faltered, hiding his eyes behind his bangs. "I need to...." He swallowed visibly.

"What?" Kagome frowned and stepped forward, reaching up to touch his face. His hand intercepted hers and all but crushed it in his grip as he pushed her back into a tree. "Inuyasha?" Kagome frowned, more than a little scared at the action. "What are you doi-mpph?"

Her reply was cut off as his body was pressed up against hers, and his mouth crushed against her own in a desperate kiss. Shocked at the sudden action, Kagome could still not help but close her eyes and lean into the kiss, parting her lips so that she could deepen it.

Shifting against the unrelenting bark, she brought one hand up to rest on the side of his neck and tried to pull him closer to her. Groaning, he complied and pressed her harder against the trunk, his stance taking on a dominating air. She groaned in response, vocalizing her delight and rocked her hips against his.

Quickly, he pulled her to him and brought them both down to rest on the ground, his body immediately covering her own. She unconsciously parted her knees and he settled himself between them, drawing her hands above her head at the same time and pinning them there.

Breaking off the kiss, he nuzzled the side of her cheek. "Oh kami, I knew you would taste good."

Kagome stopped moving and held very still. "What are you talking about?" She asked him with a worried frown. "We've kissed before."

"Oh, I think I'd remember that," he leaned down and whispered into her ear. "Ka-go-me."

"Oh god," Kagome felt her heart stop. "You're not Inuyasha," she squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself not to cry. She had just....with the person who had been stalking her. To say that she felt violated was an understatement. She actually _enjoyed _it, and that was the worst part, she thought to herself as tears welled up in her eyes.

"What gave it away?" The figure with Inuyasha's image leaned up to stare into her eyes, a gloating smirk on its lips.

"Get off me," she screamed, bucking her hips and trying to get her legs free. Her hands were being crushed above her head, and she had no way to getting them free unless he let go.

"I believe it is up to me whether I stay or leave," the imposter smirked down at her.

Kagome froze, remembering those exact words being spoken before.....back in her time. She slowly looked up from his chin to his eyes. "T-Taka?" She swallowed.

The imposter snarled at her. "Don't you _ever _mention that name to me again!" He shouted in her face, his claws digging into her wrist.

She nodded quickly, wincing at the pain and was slightly relieved that it wasn't him. But....it was someone who _knew _Taka. And who understood which one she was talking about, right?

"Let me go," she said a little more forcefully to him, kicking against his calf.

"Oh, no no no," he smirked, leaning down to lick her lips and smiling when she turned away in disgust. "You don't get it do you?"

"What?" She willed her voice not to waver.

He leaned down to whisper in her ear.

"You're mine now."

* * *

(gasps and sits at the edge of her seat) Woah, this character just has a mind of his own! Crazyness! I did not intend for this chapter to end this way, but he...er.... persuaded me...

Evil bad dude: I'll give you a lifetime supply of pocky.

SOLD! I mean....eheheh.....(glances nervously at a full demon Inuyasha) you'll get her back! I promise!

Aiiii! (runs for her life) REVIEW PLEASE! : )


	22. Chapter twenty two

Disclaimer: I do own Inuyasha! Truly I do! (Cuddles with her Inuyasha key chain) You can't have him! I stole-er.... purchased him!

A/N: Bwahaha! Yes, that last chapter was, indeed, an evil cliffhanger. But hey, at least I'm not leaving you hanging for weeks or months on end like so many other fanfic writers do, right?

Sorry for not passing out cookies last time, I was remiss.... (hands over a plate of cookies) Help yourselves.

* * *

"KAGOME!"

"WAAAAHHHH!"

Sango rubbed her temples as Inuyasha's desperate screams intensified, causing the kit to wail harder for his adoptive mother. She herself was worried out of her mind, and was it not for the crying kit on her shoulder, she too would probably be shedding tears for her lost friend.

It was all her fault, she thought to herself, pushing back a choked wail. She hadn't woken up when Kagome was abducted, and now she was gone without a trace. Sango took a deep breath and steadied herself, pushing back her feelings of despair and turned to comfort the small kit that clung to her. He needed comfort more then she did right now.

"Any luck?" She turned to Miroku, who was deep in meditation, trying to locate Kagome's miko aura.

"Shh," he said without opening his eyes.

"KAAGOOMEE!" Inuyasha shouted once more, his loud voice going further off into the forest with each enraged call. Sango prayed to all the Kami that he would find her scent quickly before something horrible happened to Kagome.

"Wh-why ca-can't Inuyasha find her scent?" Shippo wailed into Sango's shoulder, his little hands grasping the material of her yukata. The kit was probably as desperate for Kagome's comforting scent as much as Inuyasha was. She pat his back in what she hoped was a comforting manner.

"I don't know, Shippo," Sango frowned, concerned.

"Probably a spell," Miroku muttered, not bothering to open his eyes as he continued to focus on finding her aura.

"KAGOMEE!" Inuyasha's voice called again from within the forest. Something deep and primal in his voice set Sango off, her mask of calm crumbling away as it reverberated in her head.

"Why didn't I wake?!" She finally snapped, choking on her words and falling into a kneeling position next to the monk in the center of the garden. "I should have heard the struggle and woke up immediately!"

"You couldn't have," Inuyasha shouted, his voice hoarse as he walked back towards them. "There wasn't any struggle."

"What?" Sango's head snapped up, her gaze reaching his own searchingly. "What do you mean? How do you know?"

"Bastard has my scent," his voice cracked in anger. His claws dug into his palm as he made a fist, the bloody scent not even fazing him as it reached his nose.

"You mean she thought it was you?" Sango asked, incredulous.

"It took my form," Inuyasha bit out with a growl.

"So you found a scent?" Miroku opened his eyes to look directly at the hanyou.

"I did...." He nodded curtly. "But it ends in the middle of the forest, as does Kagome's scent."

"It's a spell," Miroku replied, closing his eyes once again. "There are spells to cover one's scent, however, very few can cover an aura. Kagome herself has a powerful miko aura, it should be difficult to hide."

"Did you find it yet?" Inuyasha began pacing, agitated. "We don't have all day! God knows that the fucker's doi-," He ended the sentence abruptly with a snarl, not wanting to think about it anymore. He couldn't bear it if Kagome was being hurt in any way. Bile rose in his throat as the thought of horrible things came to mind. "Goddamn it monk! Hurry it the _fuck_ up!" He roared, pushing back the sick feeling and replacing it with anger.

"I am trying," Miroku replied in an even tone, his eyebrow lowering in slight anger at the hanyou's tone. "But it's very hard to locate her aura when your own youki is flaring up right in front of me."

Inuyasha snarled at him and took a deep breath, trying to calm down. No, no good, he shook his head. The demon inside of him was clawing, raging to be free.

_Mate! _It snarled. _Find mate! Kill rival male! KILL!_

He quickly nodded in agreement, trying to appease his youkai side. Soon, he promised himself.

_Now! _It snarled viciously at him.

"Soon!" He shouted aloud, ignoring the questioning glances the other pack members gave him. He huffed and resumed his pacing, a little further away from Miroku so his youki wouldn't interfere in the monk's search.

He was pissed as all hell. It was the kit's cries that woke him early that morning, and he felt his heart stop altogether at the desperate noise. Leaping into the other room as fast as he could ever remember, he was almost knocked over backwards by Shippo, who launched himself at his chest and held on tightly.

Confused, he growled at the kit and awkwardly pat his head before turning to more important matters, mainly Kagome.

The sight of the empty futon nearly sent him over to becoming a full youkai, despite Tetsusaiga at his side. He scared Sango out of her wits with the most dog-like snarl that had ever passed his curled lips. Cursing himself for falling asleep, he punched a nearby wall in his frustration, shaking the frame.

Servants came running when they heard his loud and vile cursing, watching with trepidation as he dropped onto all fours, sniffing around for Kagome's trail. To his horror, he found it leading out of the building and out past the garden, into the woods.

"Inuyasha?" Miroku's voice pulled him back to the present sharply.

His head snapped back around to the monk. "What?" He snapped, bouncing on the balls of his feet agitatedly. He was ready to run at the slightest provocation, needing to find his mate with every fiber of his being.

"I can barely sense her aura...." Miroku frowned, his eyes still closed. Outstretching an arm, he slowly moved his hand left and then right before stopping in a certain direction. "There," he whispered, barely audible, but the hanyou caught it nonetheless.

"I'll go on ahead, you pack the supplies and catch up later with Kirara!" He ordered them all and bounded off into the forest, not bothering to catch everyone's shocked replies.

_Now? _His youkai side asked insistently.

"Now," he growled, having already thrown Tetsusaiga toward Sango before he left. The change pulsed through him and he snarled, crimson eyes searching the forest before him as he leapt faster through the trees.

* * *

Kagome groaned and shifted as she awoke. A roaring headache soon accompanied the movement and she gasped at she felt a piercing pain knock on her temple.

"Mmphh," She moaned and took deep gulps of cool air in attempts to try and calm it down. Once the pain had lessened to a dull roar, she sighed in relief and tried to shift onto her side, feeling a sick feeling rise in her stomach. Something hindered her process and it took a while for this new development to process.

Frowning, she tried to shift over from her back to her side once again. Her eyes flew open when she realized that something was holding her wrists in one place.

Gasping, she looked up to see ropes tied around her wrists, binding her to the corner pole inside a hut. Looking down, she realized in horror that her legs were similarly bound together at the ankle, though free to move, unlike her arms.

Kagome felt her heart pound in her chest as she glanced about the rest of the hut, expecting Inuyasha's look alike to be nearby, plotting his next scheme. She prayed to the Kami that if she was alone in the hut, she would sit through her grandfather's lectures if she ever got back home alive. Her heart slowed a bit when she realized that she was alone, thankfully.

'Great,' she thought to herself with a sigh, already regretting her prayer. 'Now I have to sit through jii-chan's ramblings.'

Closing her eyes, Kagome tried to recall what had happened earlier. Frowning, she realized that she couldn't remember much after he revealed himself and told her that she belonged to him. Shivering at the thought of that particular memory, Kagome tried to wipe that image from her mind and opened her eyes, immediately struggling against her bonds.

Looking up, she quickly assessed the knot and set about trying to wriggle her wrists out of the rope. If she could just get out of the hut, she could get back to Inuyasha.....

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Kagome gasped as her own voice came from the hut's doorway. Heart pounding, she looked up to see the image of herself, dressed in her own stolen uniform. Her twin smirked and raised an eyebrow at her, leaning against the doorway with crossed arms.

"Why?" She croaked out in a raspy voice before coughing, trying to clear away the blockage in her throat.

"You really didn't think those were ordinary ropes, did you?" She heard herself laugh patronizingly.

'No, not myself,' she shook her head and argued with herself. 'A sorcerer using my form.' She corrected.

"What?" She frowned, confused.

"Look again," the imposter gestured to the ropes, the image of her own eyes daring her to do so.

Kagome swallowed, suddenly not wanting to look. She steeled herself mentally and let out a deep breath before slowly looking up. A shriek escaped her lips as the ropes suddenly became a rather large snake coiled around her wrists.

"Struggle any more and it'll be forced to bite you," it laughed. "And I really wouldn't want that, Kagome," it licked its lips and took a step forward.

"Get back!" Kagome shouted desperately. "Don't!"

"Don't what?" It blinked, a picture of innocence. "I was only going to release you from your bonds, but...." It shrugged and stepped back. "If you say so."

"Why would you do that?" Kagome narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "You know I'd try and run away," she challenged it.

"Yes, but I've just set up barriers around the hut," it gloated. "You couldn't walk past this door anyway. Now," it leaned in close again. "Shall I remove it? I would much prefer your limited cooperation."

"Why did you take me?" Kagome narrowed her eyes, ignoring the question. "Who are you?"

"What will you give me if I tell you?" It leaned against the wall and stared down at her. "I really don't think you're in any kind of position to be making demands."

Kagome growled as best she could in her human voice. "Let me go!" She demanded. "If you let me go right now, I'll stop Inuyasha from killing you outright," she cajoled.

Her imposter laughed. "That half-breed? Kill me?" It laughed again. "Oh, that's laughable!"

"You're full youkai, then?" Kagome swallowed her anger and asked.

"What do you think?" It turned the tables on her. "Like I said before, I'll give you the information you want....for a price."

"What price?" Kagome felt fear course through her veins like ice. She swallowed the bile in her throat and forced herself to keep up the conversation. If she did so, it might reveal vital information unknowingly.

It smirked and kneeled down next to her, its form changing from her image to that of Inuyasha's. "I wonder....." Inuyasha's voice replied, husky. Claws ran over her exposed thighs, lightly scratching up from her knee to the edge of her skirt.

"On second thought," Kagome cringed nervously. "I don't think I want to know that bad." She forced her eyes to stay open, despite the urge to close them and keep them closed.

"You were so eager earlier," it laughed. "What's changed Kagome?" Inuyasha's soft voice breathed in her ear.

"Stop it!" She cried out, turning her head away in disgust.

It chuckled in a very non-Inuyasha way. "Very well. It makes no difference to me," it suddenly stood. "However, you _will _assist me in retrieving the crimson talisman," it demanded and glared at her.

Kagome shook her head and laughed nervously. "You think I'm stupid enough to fall for that? Kami knows what _you'd_ do with it!"

"Well, then," it leaned down and threw away the snake binding her feet. "If you're that opposed to the second option...." It trailed off and roughly spread her legs.

"Aii!" Kagome shrieked, her heart stopping altogether. "I'll help! I'll help!" She screamed loudly, kicking her legs away fro his grasp and locking her knees together.

It smirked, taking on Kagome's form once again. "Very well."

* * *

"What the hell does he think he's doing?!" Sango shouted angrily as they soared above the forest, riding on Kirara. She clutched Tetsusaiga to her chest protectively with one hand and held onto Kirara with the other. "The idiot actually threw away his sword!"

The neko-youkai was traveling faster then usual, as per their desperate request. They were making good time, however, it was pushing them all to grasp on tighter and closer than they usually would. Shippo was settled in front of her, clutching onto her stomach. She had placed her boomerang bone in front of her, the band tight about her waist. It blocked the wind from pushing Shippo right off, creating a little barrier for him.

Miroku, much to her chagrin, was pressed tightly against her from behind, his arms wrapped around her midsection, just below her bust line. She could have swore he was leaning into her on purpose, but at the speed Kirara was moving, it was hard to tell. A soft caress on the underside of her breast made her stiffen in shock and anger.

"Houshi-sammaaa!" She shouted loudly. "Watch the hands!"

"I apologize, Sango," Miroku replied in an innocent voice. "But if I don't hold on tighter, I fear I may drop from the skies."

"You should fear something alright!" She threatened, cursing her inability to move her hands and jerk his arms down to where they should be.

"I mean nothing by it, Sango," Miroku replied in all honesty. "I cannot help but cling tighter as our speed increases."

"And you mean something by it all those other times you've groped me?" She snapped over her shoulder.

"Of course," he smiled.

"Eh?" She blinked at him incredulously and felt a blush rise in her cheeks. "What-you don't mean...."

Was he trying to say that he wasn't being perverted everytime he touched her? Come to think of it...she frowned, he hasn't groped any other women in ages. Could he really....?

"Appreciating a fine body such as yours is something I enjoy doing willingly," he spoiled her hopes with a perverted grin.

Clenching her teeth, she huffed and turned around, embarrassed by her own thoughts. "I should have known," she mumbled to herself. "You never change, do you?"

"Oh, I can find plenty of reasons to change, Sango," his warm breath puffed seductively against her ear as he whispered. "One of the main reasons being you."

Swallowing, she jerked her head away and looked down at the forest, embarrassed. "Er...." She choked, feeling a hot blush spread widely across her face. "I don't-I mean....," She trailed off and stiffened as his hand stroked the underside of her breast again.

Oddly enough, she didn't feel as angry as she usually was when she kicked his shin rather lightly in retaliation.

"Pervert," she grumbled.

'Come on,' a little voice popped up inside her head. 'You wouldn't want him any other way and you know it.'

'Shut up,' Sango huffed.

"Mou," She groaned and leaned forward. "I'm becoming more like Inuyasha everyday."

"Talking to yourself?" Miroku grinned.

"Leave me alone," Sango sighed and clung tighter as Kirara picked up speed once again.

'Kagome,' Sango prayed silently to herself as she scanned the forest below. 'Please be safe.'

* * *

Ah hah! A little Miroku/Sango fluff, per request. Huzzah! Chapter 22 is all finished! (passes out cookies and tater tots) Try the tots, I just took them out of the oven!

PLEASE REVIEW! My muse likes his ego stroked once in a while.

(Toddles off to work on chapter 23)


	23. Chapter twenty three

Disclaimer: 'Tis I, once again, your ever faithful disclaimer! I set about trying to right the world in its error. Ah hah! Methinks this anime belongs to Rumiko Takahashi! Not Juliana, the ever-dedicated writer, who is currently busy drinking...strawberry flavored beer?!

A/N: Mmm...strawberry....I love it! I love living in Canada! Okay then, moving on....THANK you so much for the reviews, they were wonderful. You made my day! : )

Ahh, yes, we are winding down here in the story....I'm thinking mayyybee 5 or 6 more chapters? Either way, I'm going to keep it action packed and funny, I swear.

A lot of you are wondering where the comedy went. Well, duh! This is the action part of the story! But don't worry; the humor will make a comeback.

* * *

He moved through the forest easily, a predator's agility allowing him to move with a practiced ease among the trees. He barely felt the bark of the branch below his feet before he was in the air and already landing atop another.

He was moving blindly, he knew, without a scent trail to follow. It was being concealed, he remembered beta male telling him. Huffing, he leapt again, angrily this time onto another branch. No matter. Scent or not, he would find his mate.

'Damnit!' The hanyou spoke from within the thick layers of his mind. 'Can you not say the word 'Kagome'?!'

He snarled at the hanyou to stay back. He was free at last, and wasn't about to give up his freedom that easily. Not until the rival male was dead, and his mate was safe.

Leaping once more, he scanned the forest meticulously, his crimson eyes searching wildly for his prey. A lone rabbit scurried out of its den and hid under a bush. The youkai snorted, hearing its own stomach growl in protest, but forcefully ignored it.

_Later, _he promised himself.

Inuyasha knew that this was the most under control that he'd ever been as a full youkai. Many other times before the bloodlust would be so consuming that he could not keep his thought patterns straight.

When he threw away Tetsusaiga, a small part of him was worried that he'd be so consumed that he'd unintentionally hurt Kagome. Once the youkai was fully released, his fears were put to rest all at once. The youkai knew how to distinguish Kagome and the pack members from everyone else, and would die before allowing harm to come to any one of them.

He was able to merge his two sides together, somewhat. A rush of thrill went though him as he was able to direct his youkai blood. He had never been able to do this before, but now that his two sides had a common goal, he felt energized.

_This _is the full demon that he wanted to be. Not the crazy, blood starved monster that so often released itself from within.

Soaring high, he scanned above the tree line for a smoke trail but found none.

No matter. He would find her.

* * *

"Explain to me again why I have to be blindfolded and carried around like a sack?" Kagome snapped angrily, trying to knee his chest.

Her legs were bound yet again-with real rope this time-and her wrists were similarly bound behind her back. The bastard had taken on Inuyasha's form again, and was currently carrying her through what she assumed to be were trees, given the infrequent stops.

"Well, I can't very well have you blurting out to others where the location is, now can I?" Inuyasha's voice replied, causing a fit of anger to burst in her chest.

"Who would I tell?!" She exploded. "You've kidnapped me and there's no way of me even _knowing_ how to get back to my friends!"

"Who says you're going back?"

Kagome felt her heart stop, then sputter up again slowly. "Wh-what do you mean?" She choked. "I promised to help you get the talisman, didn't I?"

"Yes, you did," it replied. "But I don't remember saying that after the fact, you could go home."

"But you have to!" She protested loudly. "What are you going to do with me otherwise?" She demanded.

"Ohh, I've been watching you for a long time now, Kagome," it mocked her with a pat on the rump. "I've grown to like you. A lot, in fact."

"What does that mean?" She nearly burst out into tears at the slight innuendo.

"I think you'll find that you like me, as well."

"When _hell freezes over!_" She screamed, unaware that she had it in her to swear so loudly and openly. Inuyasha must be rubbing off on her. She started kicking him as hard as she could despite the bonds. The thought of rape crossed her mind and she could feel herself start to shake.

"We'll see what the talisman has to say about that," it replied, and Kagome could practically hear the smirk behind the words.

"You-you wouldn't!" She protested. Oh god, she'd never thought about that before. If he had the talisman, he could make anybody do anything he wished. Including herself. She moaned and fell limp in his grasp, praying to the Kami once more for Inuyasha to come crashing through the trees any minute now, Tetsusaiga at the ready. "You can't!"

"I'll do what I damn please!" It snapped. "Nobody will tell me what to do or not to do! I've waited far too long for this!"

"How long?" Kagome raised an eyebrow in thought.

"Centuries," It spat in anger.

"HAH!" Kagome smirked. "So you're from this era, originally? You must be some sort of youkai!" She was practically gloating over the fact that she got him to slip her some information.

A sudden dropping feeling came to her stomach and she shrieked when she realized she wasn't over his shoulder any longer. Tensing up her muscles, she waited for the impact of the earth to come up and greet her.

A clawed hand grasped her arm, tearing through the flesh. She screamed in pain as it held her with one hand, and she dangled from its grasp. It purposefully dug its claws deeper into her flesh, causing her to cry out once more in pain.

Kagome felt a burning sensation behind her eyelids and realized that tears were falling down her cheeks. She angrily tried to wipe them away on her sleeve.

It pulled her up by the arm and she soon found herself standing on a branch.

"You," It whispered into her ear and she shivered at the eerie sensation. "Will not utter a single word the entire way there, do you understand me?"

She swallowed, then wordlessly nodded.

"One word," it warned. "And I'll let you drop next time."

'Oh kami,' she cried mentally, squeezing her eyes shut. 'Inuyasha!'

* * *

"Kirara! Can you smell anything odd?" Sango asked the neko youkai as they continued on in the direction Miroku had pointed out earlier.

"Why not ask the demon who can actually talk?" Shippo shouted angrily, making a fist and trying to appear tough, despite the fact that he was cuddled close to Sango's stomach and whimpering.

"Alright," Miroku spoke from behind Sango's shoulder. "Shippo, can you smell anything odd?"

"How can I when we're moving so fast?" Shippo protested loudly.

"You could always lift your head and turn around...." Miroku suggested lightly.

"Are you nuts?!" Shippo shrieked. "I'm just a kid! I'm too young to die!"

"Kirara?" Sango eyebrow twitched as she asked the neko once again. A slight roar reverberated from underneath them, and they suddenly found themselves changing direction.

"Aiii!" Shippo screamed in fear and held onto Sango's boomerang bone for support as they quickly dropped altitude, flying below the tree line and into the forest.

"What do you think she smells?" Miroku asked Sango, purposefully leaning in to speak in her ear.

"I'm hoping its Inuyasha," Sango retorted, clutching Tetsusaiga closer to her chest. "The idiot threw away his sword."

"I think it was for a reason," Miroku pointed out. "Perhaps he did it on purpose."

"What for?" Sango frowned. "What reason would he have?"

"You-you mean...." Shippo's voice wavered. "He _wanted_ to transform into a full youkai?!"

Sango gasped aloud. "Why?!" She demanded, turning to face Miroku as if he held all the answers.

He, in turn, shrugged. "Better....tracking abilities?" He wondered out loud.

"That might be it," Shippo agreed. "But to become youkai for that...." He shook his head. "What if he goes bezerk like all the other times and hurts Kagome?!"

"I don't think he'll ever do that," Miroku shook his head at the kit. "His actions in the past have shown that on some level he does recognize Kagome."

"Yeah, but still!" Shippo protested. "I don't think he should have done it."

"I don't think so either," Sango replied darkly.

"I'm sure he has his reasons," Miroku supplied cheerfully, earning him to sets of glares. "Eh heh...."

* * *

Inuyasha cursed and dropped from his perch on a branch to the forest floor. He had enough reign over his youkai blood to direct himself to do such actions, thank kami.

Lifting his head, he inhaled a deep breath of air and began sifting through all the various scents, trying to pick the out. Snorting, he frowned. Nothing.

Growling, he leapt forward again, racing through the branches with ease.

Damn it all to hell. Where the fuck could that bastard have taken her? He couldn't have gotten that far in a couple of hours, it just wasn't possible.

Lifting his head again, he took another sniff at the air and nearly fell of the branch he was on. Snarling viciously, he dug his claws into the bark and braced himself for the youkai's fury.

_Blood! BLOOD! KILL!_

'Not yet!' He snarled and pushed the youkai all the way back, fully regaining control over his body. It wasn't safe to keep him out anymore, now that the air reeked of Kagome's blood.

It snarled and raged, but Inuyasha shifted back into hanyou form. Breathing deeply, he took huge gulps of air to calm himself down, but the smell was still lingering. Falling down to the ground, he began scanning the forest floor for the blood he already knew was there.

It didn't take long to find it, considering the rather large quantity of it. Leaning down, he hesitantly dipped his fingers in the darkened, clotting blood. Bringing it up to his face, he sniffed again, trying to catch onto her attacker's scent.

There was no scent, he determined. The bastard hurt her. He snarled and punched the ground angrily.

"NO!" He shouted in a hoarse voice.

Why? Why wasn't he there to protect her? Why didn't he _insist _that they stay together for the night? Why the _fuck _didn't he tell the monk to keep his hands to himself for the night and switch with Sango?!

A whimper passed through his throat and leapt out of his lips.

Terrible.

He was a _terrible _mate.

And now she was hurt, bleeding. A burning sensation itched at his eyes and he ignored it forcefully. Fuck crying. He needed to kill that thing. _Now._

Following the scent of blood, he discovered another drop of blood slightly away from the others. Frowning, he sniffed again and took another few steps to find another couple of drops.

It was a trail, he realized. A sick, vile trail of blood, but a trail nonetheless. The predator inside him rejoiced and he took off, following the blood trail. He ignored his rage, promising himself that he'd let the bastard have it later for hurting his Kagome.

For making her bleed.

_Find mate._

"We will, I promise," he swore and picked up his pace, running faster through the forest.

He kept running until he broke through the forest line and landed on the ground. There in front of him, nestled between two mountains, was a village. He'd bet the shikon jewel that it was the village guarding the talisman, as Miroku told him days before.

Scanning the floor beneath him, he knelt and began sniffing around for Kagome's blood. Finding one last drop, he realized with a snarl that it was the last one. She probably bound it with a cloth when she had been passing here. Or it had clotted on it's own. Probably the last one, he growled in anger.

Sniffing lightly at the ground, he found no scent once again, but he did find two pairs of odd looking footprints leading the way to the village. On a closer inspection, he realized that one of the set of prints was Kagome's. He'd recognized her foreign shoe marks anywhere.

The other he couldn't place....probably because it was shaped like a non-descript sandal. Many people wore them in this time. Who's form was the bastard taking now?

He leapt up to his feet and sprinted towards the village, determined to find Kagome before another trail ran cold. As he got closer, the village became clearer to him and he realized that it was much larger than Kaede's, and would probably take him more time to comb through it than he originally planned.

He angrily sped up, planning on racing through the make-shift paddock gate that encircled the village and-

_Whack!_

Inuyasha felt his body crash into something hard and unyielding before it suddenly whipped him back five feet. He landed with a grunt on his back and was on his feet almost instantly, scanning the area to see what the hell he had hit.

Finding nothing, he leapt forward again.

_Whack!_

He lay on his back, staring up at the sky, momentarily stunned. Slowly, he lifted himself onto his elbows and stared incredulously at the gate.

"A barrier?!" He shouted angrily. "You've got to be fucking kidding me!"

"Demon be gone!" A man appeared with a spear from behind a hut and bellowed angrily at him. The man blinked, then stared at Inuyasha. "Hanyou?" He whispered almost to himself, but Inuyasha caught it nonetheless.

"Yes, hanyou!" He yelled. "Now let me in!"

"What business does a hanyou have in this village?" The man crossed his arms and stared down at Inuyasha.

Growling, Inuyasha leapt to his feet and stood as close to the barrier as he could without getting shocked. "Some bastard stole my tama detector and I want her back!" He regretted the words almost immediately after they left his lips.

_Back to 'tama detector' are we?_

'Shut up!'

The man narrowed his eyes. "Tama detector?"

"Miko!" He corrected himself. "She was taken here!"

"And what would a miko concern herself with a hanyou?" The man raised an eyebrow in doubt.

Inuyasha felt his ears lower reflexively, but he snarled instead. "None of your damn business! Let. Me. In." He punctuated each word with a threatening crack of his knuckles.

"We allow none of demon blood within this village. You are wasting your time," the man turned on his heel and strode away, as confident as you please.

"Bastard!" Inuyasha raged.

"Inuyasha!"

The hanyou turned as Shippo's voice reached his ears. He watched as Kirara settled on the ground before allowing everyone to slide off.

"Monk," Inuyasha stomped over to him. "I need you to get rid of this barrier."

"Take it!" Sango stepped forward and interrupted, thrusting Tetsusaiga into his chest. "Don't you ever do that again!"

He have a half-hearted growl in her general direction. "Don't tell me what to do! I needed my youkai nose to catch onto Kagome's scent!"

"Barrier?" Miroku's voice reached him and he turned around to find the monk approaching it with a slight trepidation.

"What's the problem?" Sango called out, clearly over her anger at Inuyasha now that he had his sword back.

"This is no ordinary barrier," Miroku replied, turning to face them. "I fear I cannot get through as well."

"So what do we do?!" Shippo cried out. "I could smell Kagome's blood back there! She's hurt and in this village!"

"Who's there?"

Inuyasha snarled as the same man came back out behind the hut to inspect the newcomers. "Fucking human," he spat. "He wouldn't let me through." He cracked his knuckles again.

"Hello there," Miroku called out pleasantly. "My name is Miroku, and I am a humble monk. These are my traveling companions," he waved a hand to Sango, who was holding a smaller Kirara, effectively hiding her tail. Shippo popped his head out behind her shoulder, making it appear as if he were a child on a sling behind the taijya.

"What's she to you?" The man frowned, looking at the slayer's outfit without recognition.

"My wife," Miroku grinned widely, making it seem as if he were a newlywed. Sango's eyes widened and she blushed at Miroku's words, appearing the wife as well, unknowingly.

"A married monk?" The man grumbled. "What's this world coming to?"

"Fear not, for soon you shall have lots of little monks running around and protecting you from demons," Miroku held up a finger and pointed out.

"I'll _kill_ him for this," Sango whispered furiously and blushed harder, her face turning a slight purple.

"He's not with you," The man pointed to Inuyasha.

"No, he's not," Miroku shook his head. "But!" He went on just as Inuyasha was about to leap forward and hit him on the back of the head. "I know for a fact that he is trying to recover our village's miko."

"He mentioned something like that," The man leaned heavily on his spear. "Doesn't make any sense, him being hanyou and all....." He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the group.

"He's a slave."

"What?!" Inuyasha sputtered from the back of the group.

Miroku held up a hand behind his back, and gestured for Inuyasha to keep silent. "Yes, he's a slave. The miko owns him."

"How about we _both _kill him?" Inuyasha sided up to Sango and clenched his fists.

"I'd let you in, monk," the man sighed. "But the people here don't like demons. Slave or not, he can't come in."

"What if we hide his ears?" Miroku suggested, pulling out a string of coins.

"Well now," the man stared greedily as Miroku pulled off a few coins off the string. "I suppose that might work."

"I thought as much," Miroku smiled. "I'm glad we have some sort of understanding."

"Crooked monk," Sango and Inuyasha muttered as they watched the man go about undoing the entrance barriers.

"But you love me all the same," Miroku scooted close to Sango and pat her rump.

"Get your hands off me," Sango whispered furiously.

"Now, now, dearest," Miroku pat her again. "It _is_ your wifely duty."

"I'll show _you _'wifely duty'," Sango threatened and pushed up a sleeve, taking a step towards him.

"Alright, you two take care of that. I'm going to get Kagome," Inuyasha told them before holding his ears down and leaping through the now barrier-less entrance to the village.

Sango and Miroku ran after him almost immediately.

"Now, Inuyasha, it is important that we not draw too much attention to ourselves-,"

"KAGOME!"

Miroku tripped and fell.

* * *

Ahh....and the muse leaves me once again. He's fickle like that. I had to struggle on with the last part of this chapter. I'm sorry if it sucks, it's another filler chapter.

PLEASER REVIEW! (passes out cookies and pocky)

Next chapter: The Crimson Talisman and (one of) Inuyasha's battles against the Sorcerer!

Hopefully the next chapter won't suck as much.....(winces)


	24. Chapter twenty four

Disclaimer: I disclaim the fact that I stole this cheesy poof from my grandmother! It's not mine, damnit! But it's sooooooo good....

A/N: HEYA! Thanks for the reviews, guys! I know that last chapter sucked, so I worked extra hard on this one to make up for it. I couldn't bear to leave you on a very pathetic note. So here is chapter 24, yay!

Hopefully it's a tad better than the last one. There's action in it....woohooo! Hurray for action!

Please don't hate me for that last chapter! (cringes)

Have a cookie! (passes them out)

* * *

"I can't believe they thought Inuyasha was a slave," Shippo commented lightly as the group watched Inuyasha kneel down on all fours in the middle of a crowded street to smell the ground.

"The guard did seem to be a little gullible," Miroku nodded in agreement. "But either way, we're in now," he pointed out happily.

"Thanks to your bribery," Sango rolled her eyes.

"It worked," Miroku accentuated his point again.

"I suppose," Sango sighed and looked away, weary of the suspicious looks their group was receiving.

"Damnit!" Inuyasha stood quickly. "I can't find her scent again!"

"Well, we'll just have to look the hard way," Sango shrugged her shoulders. "Unless Miroku can still feel her aura?" She turned to the monk, a questioning look on her face.

"No," He shook his head in reply. "I'm sorry to say, but this barrier is throwing me off."

"It sure seems like a good idea, though," Shippo commented as he sucked on a lollipop he had stolen from Kagome's pack earlier. They were forced to leave it behind at the gate, though on the inside of the barrier. The guardsman's wife promised to watch over it and assure that nothing went missing in exchange for a few coins.

Kagome would be throwing a fit, they all knew, if something went missing in the feudal era.

"What does?" Sango turned to Shippo, who was curled up in her arms along with Kirara, hiding his tell-tale....well, tail.

"The barrier," Shippo pointed out. "It keeps the demons out."

"Yes, but a great amount of energy is needed for this kind of barrier," Miroku explained as they began walking once again down the street. "I'll bet there is something being used to keep it up."

"The talisman?" Inuyasha asked over his shoulder before continuing to sweep the area with his golden eyes.

"I'm not at all certain," Miroku frowned in thought. "I suppose we'll find out soon enough."

"We'd be better off if we split up," Sango pointed out. "We could cover more ground."

Inuyasha nodded. "I'll continue on this main street. You guys head off and start going around the huts," he ordered them, then glanced up at the sky. "We'll meet back here at sunset, that'll give us some time."

They nodded, and the two groups split off. It took a while for Sango to realize that this meant she was with Miroku.

"Hey!" She turned around to protest at Inuyasha, but he was already gone.

"What's the matter, dear?" Miroku leaned in and placed an arm around her waist.

Sango growled. "Keep your hands to yourself, _honey_," She stressed the sarcasm.

"Alright," Miroku grinned and stepped back, leaving Sango stunned, and slightly perturbed.

"Er....just like that?" She asked hesitantly as they began walking again.

"Until later," he clarified, scanning in between the huts.

"Great," she rolled her eyes, fighting back a small smile. She looked down to remind Shippo to keep his eyes open, but noticed he wasn't there next to Kirara. "Shippo?" She turned, wide-eyed and began looking around.

"Calm down," Miroku replied. "I saw him leap onto Inuyasha's shoulder just before we separated."

"He went with Inuyasha?" Sango blinked.

""Mmmhmm," Miroku nodded, and leaned on his tip toes to peer in a window as he passed, hoping for a glimpse of Kagome.

"Well, that's a new development," Sango remarked and began searching alongside him.

"They're both concerned," Miroku shrugged. "Only makes sense that they'd stick together now that Kagome has gone missing."

"Even though they fight constantly when she's around?" She replied, incredulous.

"I think on some level, they understand they're pack," Miroku commented, remembering Myouga's comments from a long while ago. "The fighting is a power struggle. Though, Shippo does realize he's going to lose every time. He is a pup, after all, according to Myouga."

"And Inuyasha's alpha male," Sango nodded. "Does that make Kagome his mate, then, since she cares for the pack's pup?"

"I would only assume so," Miroku replied. "You've noticed the odd behavior between them," he pointed out.

"Yes," she nodded. "It's very.....peculiar."

"So, how far do you think they've gone?"

"Maybe not all the wa-," Sango cut herself off before turning sharply to the monk. "How the hell do you do that?!" She demanded.

Miroku chuckled. "You were distracted by your own thoughts to fully realize the question."

"Well don't do it again!" She snapped. Kami knows what other questions he would try asking her. She was more afraid of her own answers than his questions, to tell the truth.

"As you wish," he nodded his head. "Let's continue to search for Kagome. If we don't find her soon, both Shippo and Inuyasha might fall into some sort of withdrawal."

"That'd be a sight to see," Sango chuckled.

"Very scary, indeed."

* * *

"Inuyasha?" Shippo asked, tucking his tail within the hanyou's haori as he sat on his shoulder.

"Who said you could come along, runt?" Inuyasha asked gruffly.

"Grr....don't be mean!" Shippo frowned and slapped his shoulder angrily. "I want to help find Kagome!"

"So help find her with Sango and Miroku!" Inuyasha snapped distractedly, sniffing at the air.

"Maybe I don't want to," Shippo huffed.

"Pipe down," Inuyasha ordered. He continued walking through the crowded street, watching angrily as the villagers stared at him pointedly with disgusted looks on their faces as he passed. He nearly growled when one of them turned their gazes to Shippo, who squeaked and started shaking.

Cracking his knuckles, Inuyasha continued on, sweeping the view with his eyes for anything out of order, or out of place. He searched in vain for the green and white uniform Kagome was always wearing. Coming up with nothing, he huffed and crossed his arms agitatedly.

"Where the hell could he have taken her?" Inuyasha snapped.

"Inuyasha!" Shippo pointed out a finger, gesturing him to look in front of them. "Look over there!"

Turning his gaze straight ahead, Inuyasha watched as the crowds began to disperse and a shrine came into view at the end of the street. High staircases lead the way up to the building, which seemed to be half way up in between the mountains. He glared at the cozy little shrine, tucked away from the rest of the village.

"Ten guesses as to where the talisman is," he said to Shippo.

"Hah! I'll bet it only takes me nine!" Shippo grinned widely, happy that he had a new game to play.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "Baka."

"What?" Shippo asked, squinting up at the shrine. A sudden realization crossed over his face and he gasped, turning back with wide eyes. "It's there!"

"No shit," Inuyasha scowled. "Let's go."

"Wait! You're not going to-," Shippo was cut off as Inuyasha sprinted through the street and the poor fox kit was left to hold on tightly, or be thrown off.

"Inu-ya-sha!" He shouted loudly.

"Not now, Shippo!" Inuyasha replied, reaching the bottom of the stairs and taking them three at a time, ignoring the protesting kit as he bounced up and down on his shoulder.

Hopping all the way up the endless stairs, he reached the top with a huff and landed on the ground, sniffing the air. Smoke and incense reached his nostrils and he huffed it back out again, leaping once again for the main shrine entrance.

Grasping Tetsusaiga with one hand, Inuyasha yanked the shrine shoji open and assumed a stance, prepared to draw his sword

The sight that greeted him nearly turned his legs to jelly with relief. Kagome stood in the center of the room with her back turned to him. She seemed to be praying before an alter which held a large box in front of it. Demon wards were placed all around the box, and Inuyasha knew that it had to be the crimson talisman.

The shoulder of her sleeve was soaked in blood, but he couldn't smell it.

Kagome spun on her heel and turned to face him, gesturing like mad across her throat for him not to speak. The intensity of her eyes caught him and he nodded in agreement, though still frowning.

She mouthed the word 'barrier' and put a slashing motion across her throat, gesturing for him not to speak.

He nodded and turned to Shippo, placing a hand over his mouth so he got the picture. What the hell kind of barrier is set off by a voice? Kami, there is a line that some villages shouldn't cross when it came to spells.

She swallowed and glanced her eyes quickly to the left, trying to figure out a way to show that she was the real Kagome. She reached up and shifted her uniform over so he could see the now healed mark, a slight scar in the junction between her neck and shoulder.

He nodded and let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. He relaxed his stance and was about to take a step towards her when her sudden frantic eye movement caught his eye again.

She was motioning with her eyes for him to look left in a subtle, desperate way.

He frowned, and slowly moved only his eyes to the direction she was looking in. It took him a while to figure out what she was motioning at, but when the fading sun glared through one of the windows, it's red rays caught the glare of a small string stretching across the room directly in front of him.

He frowned at it, wondering what in the hell it was, and looked back to Kagome with a questioning glance. She mouthed 'barrier' again and he understood this time.

He madly gestured for her to come toward him and nearly snarled when she shook her head sadly.

He threw his arms open wide in a 'what' gesture.

Her eyes widened suddenly and she threw a hand to her mouth, gesturing wildly behind him.

Turning around and to the side, he nearly yelped as the blade missed him by a millimeter. Looking up the katana, he saw a face he didn't recognize, but a smirk that he did.

Bastard.

Stifling a growl, he drew Tetsusaiga and gestured for Shippo to get the hell out of the way. The sorcerer grinned widely and leapt back, assuming a fancy stance that nearly made Inuyasha roll his eyes.

Hefting Tetsusaiga up, he glared furiously at his opponent and dared him to make the first move. All the while, he watched as Shippo raced to safety with Kagome inside the shrine.

Smirking, Inuyasha raised his sword and screamed a silent 'Kaze no kisu!' as he let loose a powerful swing.

* * *

_ROAR!_

Sango yelped as the ground beneath her shifted and she fell towards Miroku, who effortlessly caught her and helped balance them both out.

"What the hell was that?!" She frowned and looked up, surprised to see debris flying in the air above the village shrine.

"It sounded like a wind scar," Miroku said darkly as they both took off running through the crowded street. They watched as another blast struck near the shrine and they doubled their efforts, shouldering their way past villagers in their desperate attempt to reach the shrine.

"Do you think Inuyasha found the sorcerer?" Sango shouted over to Miroku.

"It's more than likely," He replied, panting from exertion.

"Oh god," Sango moaned. "Where's Kagome?"

"We shall soon find out," he replied and they broke through the street, running to the foot of the stairs.

"I'd be careful if I were you."

Sango and Miroku both whipped around to find an old, wizened man sitting against a tree, supposedly napping.

"What do you mean?" Miroku asked politely.

"You look like foreigners from another village," the old man opened his eyes and glanced at them.

"We are," Miroku nodded.

The old man nodded. "Be warned: Once you reach that top step, you cannot utter a single word."

"Why not?" Sango frowned curiously.

"It's a barrier," the old man shrugged, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "To protect the talisman."

"What happens if somebody carelessly speaks?" Miroku asked.

"The entire shrine will be hit with a purifying blast," the old man said in a calm voice, closing his eyes once more.

"What?!" Sango shrieked. "Are you serious? Why? It'd destroy the shrine!"

"Not to mention harm many people," Miroku pointed out.

The old man opened his piercing eyes again to stare at them gravely. "It's better to destroy and kill a small few than risk having that talisman back into the wrong hands."

"Kami!" Sango swore. "What about Inuyasha and Shippo?"

"And Kagome, if she's up there as well," Miroku's eyes widened.

"Thanks for the advice!" Sango threw over her shoulder as they both took off running up the stairs.

The old man smiled kindly and settled back to sleep.

"Why the hell can't anyone else hear the blasts?" Sango asked over her shoulder to Miroku, who was two steps behind her. "They're all going on as if nothing is happening!"

"Probably another spell on behalf of our favorite sorcerer," Miroku huffed, leaning heavily on his staff as he climbed the stairs. "By Kami, there are a lot of steps here."

"You aren't kidding," Sango panted. "Kirara, don't say anything when we get up there, all right?"

The neko nodded as she climbed alongside the pair, already transformed into her larger state.

"You ready Miroku?" Sango asked as the last step came into view.

"Not really," he remarked casually.

"Too bad," she snapped and they went over the last step.

* * *

BWAHAHA! Evil cliffhanger! Sorry about that guys, but after I read the last chapter, I was sooooo embarrassed by the terrible writing. So, I quickly wrote another one in the last couple of hours and here it is to make up for the last one!

PLEASE REVIEW! They are my lifeline, and they call back muses!

(pats her muse on the head) Thank you for coming back so quickly!


	25. Chapter twenty five

Disclaimer: Inuyasha does not belong to me. Not yet, anyway. And I would also like to add the fact that this pizza (points to hamburger pizza) is disgusting. I waited twenty minutes for nothing. (shakes head sadly)

A/N: Well, boys and girls, it had appeared that all was lost for 'DA' and I. My muse had seemingly disappeared to a tropical island for vacation. But luckily for me, he forgot his speedo and had to come racing back.

I now have him locked in the basement. What? You really didn't think I was going to let him out in public wearing that hideous speedo, did you?

THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE REVIEWS!!

(passes out cookies and tater tots)

* * *

Another loud crashing noise ripped out from behind Kagome and she forcefully ignored both it and the shaking kit on her shoulder. Arranging her fingers into a praying gesture, she lowered her head and closed her eyes, concentrating all of her energy towards the heavily warded box in front of her.

She could feel three separate barriers around the box, and quickly set about trying to nullify them with her own unformed miko powers. She had no clue what she was doing, as usual, but there was something tugging her at the back of her mind, explaining to her what she needed to do in order to get the barriers off.

Without a moment's hesitation, she threw herself wholly into it, falling away from the world and drifting apart into her own spiritual haze.

_Flashback _

"_Keep it normal," it whispered to her out of the corner of it's mouth. Kagome had been horrified to see that it held a random man's face, unfamiliar to her. She could never distinguish him from anyone else now._

"_Where are we going?" She finally asked him, breaking the 'no speaking' rule without hesitation. They were striding down a heavily crowded street now, and he wouldn't dare try and hurt her again with an audience that might try and stop him._

"_Shrine," it bit out, clearly angry that she had the audacity to speak once again. "The talisman is there."_

_Passing the street, they walked into a slight clearing before the shrine steps. Kagome felt it place a hand on her upper arm, securing her to him._

"_Be warned: there is no speaking permitted past that top step."_

_Kagome blinked as a disembodied voice reached her ears. She felt a sharp tug on her arm and was forced to turn around with the sorcerer. There, sitting below a tree, sat a very old man dressed in ratty robes, who was busy chewing on a blade of long grass thoughtfully._

"_What do you mean?" The imposter voiced aloud._

"_Past that top step up there is a barrier," the old man continued, pleased that he now had an audience. "If any voice be heard up there, the entire shrine will be blasted with a purifying energy."_

"_Why?!" Kagome gasped incredulously. "It's such a beautiful shrine!"_

_The old man leaned forward in a conspiring manner, as if he were revealing all of his secrets. "The talisman." He said simply._

"_What about it?" The sorcerer snapped testily._

"_Well now, if a demon be getting in to steal it, it wouldn't know about the no-speaking barrier, now would it?" The old man cackled in glee. "And both the treasure and thief would be blown away." He sighed wistfully._

"_You don't like protecting the talisman?" Kagome asked._

"_You think I like living in a protected bubble just because of a forsaken talisman?" The old man snapped angrily._

"_What if you happened to tell a youkai about it?" Kagome frowned._

"_Impossible," the old man shook his head. "It's my job to scan everybody's auras. And yours are both definitely human."_

"_Well, now," the imposter grinned maliciously. "A very fine job done, old man. We'll be going now," it tugged on her arm and practically dragged her up the stairs. "You will break those barriers and get me the talisman," it ordered forcefully into her ear. "If you do not, I will be forced to hurt you, and then assume your form to kill your friends."_

Kagome felt her spirits lighten as the first barrier was waved off of the box. One down, two to go, she thought to herself and closed her eyes once more to begin on the second one.

Another crash roared out from behind her, causing the foundation of the shrine to shake a bit. Locking her legs, she forced herself to keep her ground and felt Shippo dig his claws into her shirt to do the same.

She had never realized how loud Inuyasha's wind scar really was. It ripped through the dead silence and roared loudly in her ears, causing her to wince. Kami only knew how Inuyasha's ears could take such a noise.

Delving further into the layered barriers, Kagome felt her own energy flare up to meet the rising reaction from the box. It was stronger than the first one, she noticed, and staggered under the weight it was placing on her. Pushing it away, she forced herself to nullify the barrier, she felt the second one drop away a moment later.

She took a long, shaky breath and swallowed. Her body swayed from the immense pressure that was being placed on her untrained shoulders. Frowning, she determinedly shook it off.

The sorcerer had threatened to kill both her and her friends if she didn't retrieve the talisman for it. It seemed to have everything planned out, all right. But what it didn't plan on was Kagome's frantically working mind.

The moment it threatened harm upon her friends, Kagome had quickly set her mind to a solution out. There was only one, she found. Luckily for her, it would work. The sorcerer planned on having her cooperation, all right. But it didn't plan on her removing the barriers and using the talisman herself.

If she could get to it and place it on her neck, she could then force the sorcerer to drop all of his illusions. His identity would be revealed and they could get rid of him. Whether he was returned to the present dead or alive, Kagome found that she didn't care.

It shocked her to know that she harbored such feelings inside of her, but the thought of a bleeding Shippo scared her more than anything. If it was between Shippo or the imposter, you could bet the shikon jewel that Kagome would pick Shippo faster than a heartbeat.

Straining under the weight of the last and final barrier, Kagome nearly let out a soft whimper in pain. Stifling it back, she bit her lips together. One sound and this whole place would be blasted to bits.

Kagome felt claw-like tentacles wrap themselves around her body, squeezing her ribs threateningly. It was the barrier, she realized, and quickly set about forcing it back from both her and Shippo.

Wondering fleetingly if a purifying arrow would work on it, she shook her head despairingly. There were none available to her now. She could only rely on her own strength.

The claws reached up and grasped her neck, forcefully this time. Her windpipe was slowly closing up and she panicked, taking in a deep gulp of air just moments before it closed. Shippo twitched beside her and she knew that the barrier had gotten to him, as well.

Praying to all the kami that she could break this quickly, she closed her eyes and tried to remember everything Kaede had taught her, which wasn't much thanks to her own impatient tendencies.

Another crash came out from behind her, followed by a 'whizz'. Just by the sound, Kagome could tell that it was Sango's boomerang bone, and relief flooded through her veins. The battle was three against one now. They could win.

* * *

'What the hell?!' Inuyasha raged in his own mind. 'It's three against one, why haven't we won yet?!'

The battle was still going on, and however many times they threw something at the bastard, managed to leap out of the way. It was like he was reading their moves. Or predicting them in some way.

_Frowning and clutching Tetsusaiga's handle a little more forcefully now, Inuyasha angrily remembered the night when he finally showed himself._

"_How the hell do you know my name? Who's 'they'?" He tightened his grip on the figure's throat, furious._

_Smirking, it looked up. "I know all about you and your companions," it said in Kagome's voice._

"_What?!" Inuyasha felt his eyes widen._

"_Shippo the fox kit. Sango the demon slayer, Miroku the lecherous monk," it's eys widened with glee. "And Kagome," it breathed in wonder._

'Fuck!' Inuyasha thought to himself. It _was _predicting their moves. It said before that it knew all about them, so it would only make sense that it was reading their moves and dodging them that way.

Watching as Sango's boomerang bone went whizzing past the evasive freak before them, Inuyasha leapt forward angrily, prepared to let loose another wind scar.

Inuyasha had barely gotten out the first syllable of the mental word inside his head when his entire body was thrown backwards, knocked over by a large crash coming from inside the shrine itself.

Barely feeling the impact of his body hitting the unrelenting ground, Inuyasha leapt up to his feet as soon as he had his bearings and went running towards the shrine, desperate to get to his mate before the imposter did.

Luckily for Inuyasha, he noticed out of the corner of his eye that the man's form was still lying on the ground. Keh! Probably winded from the blast.

Letting loose a mental cry of 'Kagome!', Inuyasha leapt inside the doorway and almost immediately froze. Shippo was being held cradled in Kagome's arms, and appeared to be passed out. Kagome herself, although dirty, was perfectly fine. Her clothes were torn in a few places, but it was nothing her uniform hadn't sustained in the past.

'How the hell could she have been in that blast and gotten out alright?' Inuyasha asked himself, frowning. Taking a cautious step forward, Inuyasha waved his hands frantically to get her attention.

Her eyes remained downcast despite his attempts, and he frowned. What the hell was she looking at? Was she all right?

_Mate! _The youkai snarled, urging him to take another step forward.

'Kagome?' He asked mentally, knowing that it was useless.

Kagome's eyes suddenly jerked up to meet his as if she had heard him. Inuyasha felt himself grow very, very still.

Her eyes were red.

And she was holding the talisman.

* * *

Ohhh, the WORST CASE of writer's block, EVER! I got halfway through and FROZE! I had to put this one up, short though it may be, otherwise I'd be going over two days without updating O.o

My muse handed me another story on a silver platter during Astronomy class, but I was like....eh....I really want to finish DA first. And now I can't write it! AHHHH!!

So, I shall wait.... (sigh) It'll come back eventually. In the meantime, here is a filler.....with no words. Think of it as a silent Inuyasha movie. (bends over with laughter) Oh yeah, that'll be the day.

PLEASE REVIEW!


	26. Chapter twenty six

Disclaimer: It doesn't belong to me. What? You wanna know about Inuyasha? Tough luck, he's locked in my basement along with my muse.

A/N: I was really surprised by the lack of reviews last chapter. It made me so sad I wasn't sure if I should continue or not. (hangs head) So please review, otherwise I can't tell if you guys like it or not. Or if I should continue, for that matter.

(holds out cookies) You can have one only if you review, LOL.

* * *

Inuyasha felt himself grow very, very still. Swallowing, he forced himself to stare into Kagome's deep red eyes without blinking. They had a slight glow to them and she was seemingly staring at him as if she could see right through him and deep into his soul.

Shivering lightly, he tore his eyes away from hers cautiously and looked down at the kit in the crook of her arm. His ears strained forward and he sighed in relief when the kit's soft, shallow breathing reached his ears. He was only unconscious, thank kami.

He looked up at her again and took a step forward, outstretching his arms and giving her a silent 'Kagome?'.

He hit a sudden barrier when he was within two feet of her and was knocked to the ground with a resounding _slap _across his chest. Stifling back a grunt, he landed rather heavily on the ground and was stunned for a few moments.

Was it the talisman creating a barrier around her body, or was it Kagome herself?

* * *

The mist surrounded her, penetrating her view and she clumsily stepped forward through it all, waving her hands in attempts to fan it away. It did no good, in fact, the mist grew thicker the more she resisted it.

"Inuyasha?" She called out, growing fearful of the mist with each passing moment. Where the hell was she? "Inuyasha?!"

"What is it you want with him, child?" A lone voice spoke out from the mist, creakingly old and assumingly female.

"Who are you?" Kagome demanded, squinting into the haze and trying to locate the speaker.

"Does it matter?" He old voice sighed heavily, close nearby. "I have been and always will be, so long as the talisman remains."

"You-you're trapped within the talisman?" Kagome's eyes widened, and she continued searching frantically for the voice. "Does that mean that I am, as well?" She asked, fearful of the answer.

"Oh no," The voice chuckled in mild amusement. "You own the talisman now. Were you not aware of its powers when you picked it up?" The voice sounded surprised at this thought.

"No," Kagome shook her head slightly. "I knew what I was doing."

"Oh?"

The mist parted before her like doors and revealed an old woman in fancy clothing, standing before a large mirror twice as tall as Kagome herself and probably just as wide.

The old woman turned to look at Kagome with a kind smile. Her hair was arranged in such a way that Kagome knew she must have been some sort of _hime_, or was attempting to look like one with a regal bearing.

Her hair appeared to have long since lost its original color, and there were deep lines around her face, betraying her old age. Upon closer inspection, Kagome saw that the clothes she wore were slightly ratty looking, going on age as well.

"Hello there, Kagome," the old woman smiled in greeting.

"Y-you know my name?" Kagome blinked and stayed where she was, not wanting to get any closer to the woman and her mirror.

"Of course," the old woman laughed lightly. "I was watching you through my mirror." She turned to face it, and reached out to stroke it lovingly. "As you were undoing the barriers put around the talisman, I was able to look within your mind and soul."

"We're in the talisman, aren't we?" Kagome swallowed in slight fear.

"Yes," the older woman breathed. "But unlike you, I cannot leave this place," her mournful eyes sought out Kagome in the mirror's reflection.

"What do you mean?" Kagome frowned.

"You are here because you now possess the talisman," she explained. "From here, you can do anything your heart desires." She raised a hand and made a sweeping motion across the mirror. "You called before for Inuyasha. What is it you want of him?"

Kagome gasped as Inuyasha came into view in the reflection, lying on the ground in slight shock, staring right at her.

"Is my-," Kagome trailed off, unsure of how to word the question.

"Your body remains there," the old woman nodded. "What you see here is through your own eyes."

Kagome swallowed and took a tentative step forward towards the mirror, her eyes never leaving Inuyasha's as he continued to stare at her in surprise.

"What's going on?" She whispered, confused.

"Inuyasha is as you see before you," the old woman replied. "Sango and Miroku are currently running towards the shrine."

"What about the sorcerer?" Kagome asked frantically, worried that he'd gotten away again.

"Sorcerer?" The old woman frowned and turned to Kagome. "I sense no aura similar to that of a sorcerer." Closing her eyes, the old woman turned toward the mirror once again and the image faded out from Inuyasha, bringing up the imposter, lying prostrate on the ground.

"Youkai," The old woman spat angrily. "It took over his body."

"What?" Kagome shrieked and stepped next to the old woman. "What do you mean?"

"You were right, I didn't sense it at first, but I do now," the old woman turned to Kagome. "It's the aura of a sorcerer. But overlying that is the aura of a youkai."

"It's both?" Kagome blinked. "How is that even possible?"

"It was human, a powerful sorcerer," the old woman closed her eyes meditatively, searching past the mirror behind her closed eyelids. "And then it merged with a youkai, years later."

"Hanyou," Kagome breathed. "Just like Naraku."

"Naraku?" The old woman blinked in confusion.

Kagome shook her head. "Nevermind."

"So what is it you wish of Inuyasha?" The woman pressed again, watching as the image floated back to the hanyou, who was slowly picking himself up off the ground.

"Er...." Kagome swallowed. "I don't know what you mean."

"You know very well what I mean," the old woman turned around, her eyes piercing into Kagome's in a cold glaze. "With the talisman, you can control anyone and anything. Now I ask you again," her eyebrows lowered dangerously. "What is it you wish of the dog demon?"

"Nothing!" Kagome gasped immediately, "I don't want to control him! The only reason why I picked up this talisman was so the sorcerer couldn't get to it!"

"And now it is in your possession," the woman nodded in agreement. "What do you wish of them?" She asked again.

"Nothing!" Kagome shouted, angry that the woman wasn't getting it.

"Surely there must be something you want," the woman gazed at Kagome under lowered lashes. "I can see into your desires," she breathed, causing Kagome to shiver. "You want this hanyou."

"No!" Kagome shouted in horror. "Don't do it! I don't wish it!"

"It does not matter if you say it out loud or not," the woman smiled lightly. "Whatever you desire will come true. Your control sweeps over the village now."

"No!" Kagome shrieked again as the image on the mirror was getting closer to Inuyasha, and she could see her own arms, one clutching the talisman, reach forward and wrap themselves around Inuyasha's neck.

She watched in horror as he blinked, giving her a confused look at the sudden action. The image grew closer, and the talisman began to glow brighter in her hand, controlling him. Inuyasha's dull-looking eyes suddenly dropped to half mast, and he licked his lips invitingly.

Kagome moaned and fell into a crouch, pressing one hand against her fluttering stomach. Her image leaned in and Inuyasha met her halfway, kissing her passionately.

"Oh god," Kagome swallowed.

"Now what is it you wish of them," the woman swept her hand across the mirror and the image of Miroku and Sango came up, standing perfectly still with dull, controlled eyes.

Kagome's heart leapt into her throat. "Nothing!" She shouted immediately. "You can't do anything to them because I don't have any desires toward them!" She shouted happily at her own realization.

"No," the old woman shook her head. "You _do _have a desire for them." She waved a hand over the mirror again and they both jerked and turned towards each other, their eyes clear once again.

"What?" Kagome frowned, glancing quickly between her and the mirror.

"You wish for them to realize how much they care for one another," the woman smiled as the couple on screen both reached forward, stroking each other's faces in a loving manner.

"No!" Kagome yelled. "I've had enough of this!"

"And the last one present," the woman changed the reflection again, back to the sorcerer this time, who was slowly picking himself up off the ground, wincing.

"Now that one, I do have a wish for," Kagome growled threateningly at the sight of it. "I wish for a spell to placed on him. One that will make him sleep until I decide to lift it."

"It is done," the woman nodded and the figure fell back to the ground, giving Kagome a satisfied gloat as its head fell and it the ground rather hard. That'll teach him for threatening to harm her friends.

"And the others?" The image changed again to encompass the entire village.

Kagome blinked. Wait a minute.... "Go back to Inuyasha," she ordered lightly.

"As you wish," the woman replied and the image changed back to the lustful hanyou, who was quickly ripping off his haori in his lust-induced state.

"Err...." Kagome paused and stared at the image, unsure if she wanted to stop him or not. No, she shook her head vigorously. This was wrong.

She glared up at the old woman, whose back was turned towards her, standing still as stone. What power did she have here? Kagome frowned again. She listened to two of her orders without question....did that mean she would listen to any others?

"Change to Miroku and Sango," she ordered in a firm voice, praying inside her head that she would be right.

The woman nodded and the image changed. Kagome felt a sense of thrill clog up in her throat and she nearly squealed in delight. There was a way out of here, yet!

"Change back to Inuyasha," she told the woman. "And remove the spell on him."

"I cannot," the woman smirked over her shoulder, already onto Kagome's game. "It is what you desire."

"Oh ho?" Kagome raised an eyebrow. "Well I desire nothing but free will for all of my friends. I always have," she added softly, remembering Inuyasha and Kikyo's meetings. A slight pang of jealously stabbed her softly, but she brushed it off immediately. Whatever made Inuyasha happy, she closed her eyes and swallowed, she would be all right with.

The old woman blinked in surprise at the sudden change in her desires, deep within her soul. "You....wish for nothing of them?" She asked, unsure of why this was. "Don't you wish for all of this to happen? Don't deny it, I can feel it buried in your heart," her eyes narrowed at Kagome.

"Yes," Kagome nodded. "I do wish for this....but only if _they _wish it. I strongly desire for their free will to return to them. Now."

The old woman blinked slowly.

"And I also desire to go back to my normal body, and have the talisman put back again into it's heavily protected box."

The old woman shook her head sadly and turned away from her, her shoulders sagging slightly. "As you wish."

* * *

Miroku blinked, feeling soft lips pressed upon his own and a warm, feminine body sprawled out on top of him. His hands, surprisingly, were clasped together with another pair, their fingers intertwined together.

He blinked again, his mouth going lax in the middle of a kiss. What in all the world happened?

"M-Miroku?!"

The monk blinked in surprise and stared up at the taijya, who was sprawled out on top of him. "What....happened?" He asked, blushing over their sudden nearness.

Sango blinked in confusion at the flush over his nose and swallowed carefully, trying to discreetly move from her straddled position. "I....I don't know," Sango swallowed, searching frantically left and right before remembering where they were and what had happened earlier.

Miroku noticed her uncomfortable, straddled position and wondered fleetingly how hard she would slap him if he rubbed up against her just once. Just to feel her body pressed up against his. He sighed and leaned back, keeping his fingers locked with her own. No, he thought to himself. There was no way he'd ever get to hold her like this again.

But....what about that kiss earlier? He frowned. What was that? Neither of them knew why they were doing it, or how they even began. Looking at the presence of clothing, he decided that not a whole lot was done, much to his disappointment.

"Err...." Sango blushed and rose up on her knees, now on all fours above him. "Would you mind letting my hands go?" She asked, forcing herself to stare at his chin and not into his eyes.

Miroku swallowed in disappointment. "Alright," he said in a low voice and released her hands, watching her as she quickly stood up and began looking around guiltily.

Sighing, he also stood up, standing close by her. "There's no need to stare as if we've done something wrong," he chided lightly.

"I don't even know _why _we did it!" Sango whispered furiously at him. "I....you...." she sputtered as Miroku reached for one of her hands, taking it in both of his and holding it lightly over his heart.

"I don't know why," he told her seriously, his piercing eyes gazing into hers. "But I'll treasure the memory of it."

Sango swallowed and felt a light blush spread across her cheeks. "You'd have felt happy with any woman," she accused. "How can you treasure it?"

"No," Miroku shook his head and began stroking his thumb over the skin on the back of her hand. "You're wrong."

"Wh-," Sango sputtered, looking up into his eyes with a slight surprised look in her eye. "You mean...." She trailed off, unsure of what to say next. Her blush had spread like wildfire across her face and she wished for both hands to cover it up.

"It was with you, and I do treasure it," Miroku sighed dramatically and closed his eyes, a first indication that Sango should be on guard. "I am looking forward to the time when we do this again," he reached forward and pulled her into his arms, stroking her back lightly.

"Uhm," Sango felt herself grow limp under his ministrations. "Miroku? Are you sure...." She stopped suddenly as her eyebrow began twitching like mad. "Get your hand off my bottom," she snapped angrily.

"Oh, my apologies," Miroku stared in surprise at his hand. "I had no idea."

"You ruined it," she muttered accusingly into his robe.

"Ruined what?" He asked her, surprised.

"Nothing," Sango pinched his hand as it began stroking her butt again. "Let's see about Inuyasha and Kagome," she hooked a finger in his robe and began dragging him along behind her.

"Sango?" Miroku asked as he was being led towards the shrine.

"Yes?" She looked over her shoulder at his serious tone. Was he going to say something important now? She felt her cheeks burn up again.

"Was it good for you, too?" He grinned.

"ARGGH!" Sango's despaired cry and a loud slap resounded throughout the oblivious village.

* * *

Hehehe! Alright...chapter 26 is up! Woohoo! NOW REVIEW! Pretty please? I might take waaaaaayyy longer on chapter 27 if you don't.....

(evil laugh) And then you shall never know who the sorcerer is! (only a couple chapters left, people!)

So REVIEW!


	27. Chapter twenty seven

Disclaimer: I would like to disclaim the fact that this pizza is delicious! And it's one of those ones that you stick in the microwave....go figure. IY doesn't belong to me....phht.

A/N: Just a note: A few of you were confused as to why Sango and Miroku were talking and the shrine didn't blow up. LOL. Crazy Makoto-jiji!! READ AND FIND OUT!

* * *

Inuyasha could admit he was mildly surprised. Blinking twice, he looked down at Kagome, who was laying underneath him and staring at him with slightly stunned eyes. He let go of the ties on his hakama, and wondered why he had tried to undo them in the first place.

And speaking of clothes....where in the hell was his haori?

"Shippo!" Kagome cried out anxiously and rolled out from underneath him, crawling quickly to the unconscious kit that lay two feet away from them.

Inuyasha blinked and shook his head. What the hell happened? Hearing a pair of footfalls behind him, he quickly located his haori and frantically put it back on. The last thing he needed was for the monk to see him and get the wrong idea.

Well....it _was_ the wrong idea, right? What the hell happened?

"Kagom-," Sango shouted before gasping loudly and slapping a hand over her mouth. Her eyes widened and she looked around nervously before frowning and dropping her hand.

"We've been talking this whole time," Sango remarked dryly to Miroku, who stood next to her.

Miroku frowned as well. "Yes, yes we have," he replied slowly before turning to Kagome. "Did you remove the barrier? Is that what the blast was?"

"No," Kagome shook her head and held up the talisman, now a dull red in her hand. "The barriers I removed were around this."

Inuyasha frowned, confused now more than ever. "What the _fuck's _going on here?!" He shouted angrily.

A maniacal laughter broke out behind them, a distance away. Everyone turned to watch the old man from the bottom of the steps come walking up the stairs, accompanied by a much younger man.

"I'm telling you, they fell for it!" The old man cackled with glee. "Gullible travelers, there were!"

"You're going to get yourself killed, old man," the younger man shook his head sadly and reached the top step.

"Let this old man have his fun!" The other chided with a slight giggle.

"Fun, eh?" A dark voice came out before them and both men looked up to see a group of furious travelers, all staring murderously at the older man. He could have swore flames were building up behind them. Every one of their smirks all held promise of retribution.

"Aiii!" The old man squealed and leapt behind his partner. "Help me, Toshi!"

Toshi sighed and mentally steeled his nerves. The old man was going to be the death of him one of these days.... Why couldn't his wife have a sane father? Was it too much to ask for boring in-laws? "Can I help you travelers?" he finally said after rubbing his temples.

"Yes," Inuyasha replied in a growl and cracked his knuckles. "You can hand over the jiji."

"Jiji?!" The old man stuck his head out from behind Toshi, an indignant look on his face. "How rude!"

"Rude?!" Sango shouted, grasping the handle of her boomerang bone. "What about you? Do you know how much trouble you caused us?"

"Pah!" The old man spat and crossed his arms defiantly. "It was only a harmless joke."

"Harmless?!" Inuyasha shouted and took a threatening step forward towards the old man.

"Please," Toshi held up his hands in a peaceful manner toward the hanyou. "Let us not fight."

"Keh!"

"Instead," Toshi turned to the old man with contempt. "Let us be thankful that Makoto here only has a few winters left in him."

"Such disrespect!" Makoto huffed and crossed his arms, indignant.

"What happened here?" Toshi suddenly blinked as he turned back around, taking in the half-destroyed shrine. The ground was all torn up and scorched in places, and the building itself looked like a blast had gone through the inside of it and was about to fall any minute now.

The doorway was in shambles and various bits of shoji screen lay strewn across the ground, all of which were half burnt.

Toshi turned to the group in front of him with glaring eyes that held promise of retribution for destroying his beautiful shrine. As leader of the village, he was responsible for it.

"He did it," everybody said at once, pointing to the unconscious sorcerer.

Toshi frowned, furious, and grasped his katana threateningly. "Bastard," he spat angrily and moved to stride past the little group.

"No," Inuyasha shoved him back roughly with one hand. "I'll take care of him," he growled low in his throat and cracked his knuckles once more.

"He destroyed my shrine!" Toshi protested. "It's my duty to bring him down, it's a matter of honor!"

"And he kidnapped and harmed my mate!" Inuyasha snarled at him, ignoring the gasps from all three humans behind him. "I will be the one to kill him, and if I have to kill you first to do it, I will!" He leaned into a crouch, ready to spring at any moment.

Toshi huffed angrily, staring at the hanyou before him. Taking in the dog ears, Toshi decided to leave it alone. Inu youkai were fiercely protective of their mates, and he decided it wasn't worth it. Though he would have a talk later on with the guard for allowing one of youkai blood into the village without talking to him first.

"Do as you please, hanyou," he finally sighed.

Inuyasha smirked gloatingly and stood upright, crossing his arms in an arrogant fashion.

"MATE?!" Two angry voices blew up behind him and he toppled over, landing at Toshi's feet.

"AGH!" Inuyasha leapt back up and bonked the monk on the head. "SHUT UP!" He roared at both Miroku and Sango.

"Guys, we can talk about it later," Kagome interrupted them. "Shippo still isn't waking up and er...." She pointed to the sorcerer. "He's still.....you know."

"Right," Sango nodded.

"And this," Kagome held up the talisman. "I've got a lot to explain and apologize for."

"What?" Inuyasha snapped angrily at her guilty tone "What do you mean?" He asked suspiciously.

"I'll tell you later," Kagome shook her head and tried to walk past him to get to Toshi. Inuyasha intercepted her and scruffed the back of her neck to get her to hold still.

"Where the hell do you think _you're_ going?" He asked in a condescending manner.

Her eyebrow twitched at his arrogant tone. "Osuwari," she said calmly and walked past the cursing, subdued hanyou to stop before Toshi.

"Yes?" He asked her once she had stopped walking cautiously in his direction.

"I'm taking this," she stated simply, holding up the talisman before placing it in her pocket.

"I cannot allow that," Toshi shook his head and crossed his arms.

"You can and you will," Kagome's hand tightened around the talisman and felt its power drift over Toshi. She hated having to use it, but it was the only way she could leave the village with it in her possession.

Ever since she had looked through her texts and couldn't find anything on the talisman, something went 'click' inside her head. Maybe the reason why nothing was written on it was because it went missing between the feudal ages and the present time. Kagome would take it with her back home, effectively cutting off 500 years of possible disaster due to the talisman.

Once she got back to the village, she would ask Kaede how to destroy, or nullify it and take it back to her shrine in the future.

Toshi's eyes glazed over and he suddenly nodded, telling her in a blank voice that it was a good idea.

Makoto, in his position from behind Toshi, frowned and hummed to himself, staring in a contemplating manner at the young girl in strange clothes before him.

"Can we go now?" Inuyasha demanded, throwing the bastard sorcerer over his shoulder, but not before he got in a satisfying kick to its stomach. "I want to get out of this fucking crazy village!"

"Yes," Kagome turned and smiled at him. "We can leave now."

* * *

"What do you mean it was all your fault?!" Inuyasha raved from his position across the fire in Kaede's hut. Miroku and Sango had taken up the two spots next to her, and she was grateful for the guard.

They had only just gotten back to the village when Inuyasha had thrown the sorcerer's body on the floor of the hut and demanded she explain her earlier admission at the shrine.

Shippo had woken up on the way home, thank kami, but had quickly fallen back asleep again the moment Kagome placed him next to the fire, exhausted by the day's events. She reminded herself to wake him in a couple of hours, just in case it was a concussion. For now, though, she would let him sleep.

"Alright," Kagome sighed. "When I picked up the talisman...."

"We know!" Inuyasha snapped. "You picked it up, found yourself in a mist and came across the old hag and her mirror, get on with it!"

"Osuwa-," Kagome threatened in a low voice, satisfied when he flinched and shut up. Furious, he growled at her and mentally reminded himself to show his displeasure when they were finally alone.

"Who was the old woman?" Miroku asked, stirring the embers of the fire carefully.

"I don't know," Kagome admitted. "She looked like some sort of hime. She also said that she was unable to leave the talisman," she frowned and winced as she remembered that she placed the talisman under seal again.

Once Toshi had 'agreed' to let Kagome take it, she had found the original box laying by the steps, just as she wished. She had quickly placed it back into the box without a moment's hesitation, and now she regretted it.

"Well," Sango frowned, shrugging. "She could be some sort of spirit."

"It appears we may have to wait until Kaede returns from her prayers to answer that question," Miroku commented lightly.

"But how is all of what happened your fault?" Inuyasha's eyebrow narrowed; annoyed that she hadn't answered the question yet.

Kagome visibly winced. "The old woman....she said that it didn't matter if I had voiced my wishes out loud. She would still grant them."

Inuyasha blinked once, then twice. "Everything that happened that I couldn't remember....was your wish?"

"Was it the same with us as well?" Sango asked, incredulous.

"Aa," Kagome affirmed and sunk her head down low.

"Wait a minute," Inuyasha jerked upright, glancing between both Sango and Miroku. "What happened with you two?!"

"Nothing," Sango blushed and turned away.

"My, my," Miroku smiled at Kagome, grasping both her hands in his and ignoring the growling hanyou. "I did not know you were so supportive of my mission."

"Er...." Kagome leaned her head back, trying to free her hands from his grasp. "What mission?"

"Acquiring an heir, of course!" he grinned shamelessly.

"Why, you...." Sango leaned around Kagome to bonk him on the head. "Be serious for a change!"

"But I am," Miroku blinked at her.

"Arrghhh!" Kagome snapped, jerking back her hands. "It wasn't like that! All I wanted was for you two to realize your feelings for one another!"

Miroku and Sango both blinked and slowly turned to look at each other out of the corner of their eyes. Sango immediately blushed and turned away when she saw him looking at her.

Feelings? Miroku? No, she shook her head. It was crazy. She didn't like him and there was _no _way that he held feelings for her. Apart from the perverted kind, of course.

"Sango," Miroku's voice breathed from behind her and she flinched at how near to her back he was. His cursed hand reached out and grasped her shoulder, gently guiding her to turn around.

Stunned that her shoulder was the only thing he grasped, she complied, turning until his face came into view. She blinked and blushed at the look he was giving her, unable to place the expression.

Was it....love? She felt her heart speed up faster.

"Sango," Miroku breathed again, swallowing. "I had no idea...."

"Don't get the wrong idea!" Sango blurted out in a high pitched voice. "I mean, I'm not sure if I'm in love with you or not!"

"....that you wanted my body so bad," Miroku blinked and finished.

Sango blinked, then growled and brought her boomerang bone down on his head. "HENTAI!" She screamed, mortified that those serious words came out of her mouth for nothing.

Kagome sighed heavily, feeling sorry for the couple. Could they just realize how much they cared about one another?

A claw scratched gently from the base of her spine up until her bra strap and she jerked upright, realizing that she had moved out from between Sango and Miroku to sit next to Inuyasha.

"Err..." She giggled nervously and fought down a blush as she turned to face him. "You're not mad, are you?" She asked in a whisper, her heart thudding in her chest.

His pointed, heated stare got the message across. "We'll talk later," he told her and drew his hand back into his haori sleeve.

'Great,' Kagome thought to herself and sighed.

"WATCH THE HANDS!"

"You misunderstand, Sango. I am merely trying to convey my own feelings."

"CONVEY THEM OVER THERE, YOU PERVERTED MAN!"

"Perverted man? Whatever happened to 'monk'? Does this mean that you're starting to see me as more of a man now?"

"Houshi?"

"Yes?"

_Whack!_

"Uhgn.."

* * *

A/N: Yay! Chapter 27! Thanks for the reviews. (passes out cookies and pocky)

Hehe...Makoto (the old man) means 'sincere and honest' LMAO.

Next chapter: Down the well and back to the present time. There, they find out the identity of the sorcerer, as well as the secret behind the woman in the talisman!


	28. Chapter twenty eight

Disclaimer: Inuyasha does not belong to me. If I had my way, the series would be sliiiightly different.

A/N: Heya! Sorry this took so long for me to upload...(a week.....). I've had midterms and papers due all over the place, and it was. not. Pretty. I actually have two still left. .

Thanks for the reviews! (passes out cookies and pocky)

* * *

"So, let me get this straight," Kagome frowned in confusion and stared at Kaede. "The woman inside the talisman is actually a spirit?"

Kaede nodded, glancing at the box that contained the talisman. "Her body is long since dead, however, her spirit remains on inside of the talisman."

Kagome slowly nodded, processing her words. The older miko had just only returned a little while ago from her daily prayers, and was asked to help discern the identity of the woman that Kagome had met. Kagome herself had volunteered for the task, asking Kaede to quickly give her a crash course so she was sure of what she was doing.

Kaede protested vehemently, declaring that such a job was unfit for beginners due to the possible danger. It included reaching out one's own soul, to go past barriers and seek out another's energy. Although the task was draining in itself, if anything were to go horribly wrong during the meditative state, the person could wound their soul, or even lose it forever.

Kagome was horrified when Kaede herself volunteered in her stead, claiming that she had done it once before and it was no trouble to her at all. Fearing for the older miko's soul, Kagome reached out to reclaim the box that had been handed over to Kaede, insisting that she would be the one to do it.

From out of nowhere, a clawed hand appeared around her arm, jerking her body back. She glared up at the hanyou, determined to give him a piece of her mind. His gaze pierced through her and Kagome felt the words tumble away from her lips. An odd sense of fear was embedded into those golden orbs, something that Kagome had never really seen up close before.

Was he....worried about her?

Kaede took no time at all in the difficult process, Kagome thought to herself with a slight jab of jealousy. There was no way that Kagome herself would be able to do such tasks as easily as Kaede.....or Kikyo, she added sadly.

Frowning, Kagome was brought back to the present by Inuyasha's shifting. She turned to glare slightly at him, and he answered with a desperate huff in her direction, which she interpreted almost immediately. She shook her head and smiled lightly at the hanyou's impatience.

"It was a spirit," Kaede whispered, her voice nothing more than a thread of sound. "And it nearly sucked in my soul."

"For what purpose?" Miroku blinked and leaned forward, straining to hear her words.

"I believe that during the process it was attempting to capture my soul, and my powers, in order to free itself," Kaede replied wearily.

"Free itself?" Sango frowned. "How can it do that with your powers?"

"The spirit itself wishes to move on," Kaede explained with some difficulty in arranging the wording so that the group would understand. "The body has died, and now the spirit must be free. However, something horrible happened in the past and now it is imprisoned here, in this talisman."

"What happened?" Kagome asked almost immediately after the words had left the miko's mouth.

"I know not," Kaede shook her head sadly, wishing she could answer the question.

"So it is possible for a miko to release a spirit?" Sango asked again, settling down into a sitting position once again, far away from the monk.

Kaede nodded after a hesitant pause. "Any monk could, as well."

"Sango," Miroku turned to the taijya, a hurt look on his face. "Are you not with us when I exorcise demons?"

"What demons?" Sango replied flatly and raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, you make it up!" Shippo supplied from his comfortable spot in Kagome's lap.

Miroku's eyebrow twitched visibly in annoyance. "Kagome doesn't think so, do you Kagome?" The monk put on his most convincing grin and turned to beam at the young miko.

"H-hey look!" Kagome pointed to the sky beyond the window as a nervous giggle escaped her mouth. "It's a bird! Look!"

Miroku sweat-dropped and hung his head with a sigh. "Why is it that I have such cruel companions?"

"You bring upon yourself," Sango remarked as she began rubbing Kirara's stomach affectionately. Miroku sighed and looked on longingly.

"So what now?" Kagome asked Kaede, trying her best now to smile at the scene across from her.

Kaede shook her head sadly. "I would not want to risk releasing the spirit until we know that it is not dangerous."

"Right," Kagome nodded her head in agreement. "But....how do we find that out?" She frowned in confusion.

"Research, I would imagine," Miroku spoke up. "We'll have to return to the village and keep our ears open for some information about the circumstances that surround the talisman."

"We have to go back there?!" Inuyasha roared in protest. "No way!" He shouted and crossed his arms defiantly.

Miroku sighed and rubbed his forehead, developing quite the headache. "Alright, Sango and I shall go back to the village while you and Kagome take this thing back to Kagome's time," he nodded his head in the general direction of the unconscious sorcerer.

"What will we do with it there?" Kagome asked and stared at the figure with distrust. She peered closer at it. Was it really asleep?

It had to be, right? She wished for the talisman to put him to sleep until she herself wished for the spell to break....which she didn't. She frowned again and turned her head to stare at the box in confusion.

"Kill it, of course," Inuyasha scoffed. "What the hell else do you think we should do with it? Keep it as a pet?"

Kagome visibly blanched at the thought. She turned to Kaede with a pleading expression on her face. "Isn't there some way of stripping him of his powers and letting him live?"

Kaede sighed heavily, wracking her brains for a solution to the problem at hand. "There are wards that can be placed upon the body that will seal away energy....however, they are not permanent. I do not believe they will hold its powers forever."

"That bastard hurt you and you want to save it?!" Inuyasha shouted at the girl next to him, glaring at the bloodstain that was still present on her arm sleeve. It reminded him that he would have to place a bandage on it soon, otherwise it would get infected and she would insist on staying home for a week. Growling at that last thought, he huffed and turned back to the conversation.

_Mate's hurt._

'Yeah, yeah, I know.'

_Blood. Lick away blood. Make it stop ._The youkai growled inside his head.

'Later,' he promised his youkai side.

"Well....I don't want to just kill it without getting any answers," Kagome replied after a pause. "There's something else going on here," she sighed and laced her fingers together in thought. "With the vision, and the talisman....I really think that it must have had some sort of reason for all of this."

"Bullshit!" Inuyasha snapped angrily. "It wanted power and it almost got it! End of story, now we kill it."

"Inuyasha....."

"What I want to know is how you're going to get it back to Kagome's time," Shippo spoke around his lollipop, which he had snitched from Kagome's pack just moments before.

"What do you mean, Shippo?" Sango frowned at the small kit, confused.

"Well....Kagome said that the well let it through while it was in her form," Shippo replied while casually inspecting his red colored treat. "It's not in her form now," he pointed out.

"Kuso!" Inuyasha's eyes widened and he muttered under his breath with a growl.

"Eh heh...." Kagome brought her hand up to the back of her neck. "He does have a point."

The whole group turned to stare at the not-so-innocent _man _lying on the floor a few feet away.

"Er...." Miroku tapped his chin with a finger. "You want to try and dress it up in Kagome's uniform?" He asked, trying to be helpful. "It _might_ work....."

"Are you nuts?!" Kagome exploded in horror and anger. "No way! No way in hell!" She swore, which resulted in several raised eyebrows in the group, Inuyasha included.

"Oi!" He snapped. "Watch the mouth!"

Kagome frowned and felt her eyebrow twitch. He could swear whenever he liked, but the one time she slipped, it was suddenly wrong to swear? "Osuwari."

"So what now?" Sango asked, frowning as she watched the cursing hanyou try to lift himself up off the ground.

"Well...." Kagome sighed heavily and closed her eyes, contemplating the problem. "What if we kept him tied up, woke him up and...." She trailed off, her eyebrows lowering in annoyance. "I can't think of anything," she sighed heavily.

"You know...." Shippo spoke up. "I've heard my papa tell me stories about how kitsunes trick monks by putting a spell on themselves that makes them keep the form they're in." At the group's blank stares, Shippo sighed and tried to explain again. "The kitsunes would take the form of men or women and put the spell on so that the monk couldn't see through it."

Kagome blinked. "A spell?"

"Uh huh," Shippo nodded, then grinned, a glint appearing in the corner of his eye. "I might do it for you.....for a price."

"I'll give you 'price'," Inuyasha growled and bonked the kit upside the head. "Do it, you little runt!"

"Wahhh!" Shippo held onto his head and tucked himself further against Kagome's belly. "I only wanted some chocolate!"

"Shippo," Kagome suddenly spoke up. "Can you change another person's form as well?" She asked excitedly, a plan slowly forming inside her head.

"Well...." Shippo hung his head slightly. "I really don't know. I've never tried it before," he trailed off, disappointed that he couldn't help his surrogate mother.

"Could you try it?" Kagome asked, biting her lower lip anxiously and clapping her hands together in a pleading expression. "Please? I think it might be the only way to get it back to my time."

Shippo sighed and stared at his hands. "I don't know, I might mess it up," he mourned dejectedly.

"Keh! Quit whining and do it, runt!" Inuyasha snapped from behind him and crossed his arms.

"Nevermind Inuyasha," Miroku spoke up, frowning at the rude hanyou. "We all have faith in you."

"Yeah!" Kagome beamed at the kit. "You're so good at becoming a bow!" She reminded him.

"You thought I was a snail," Shippo grumbled and closed one eye, glaring slightly at her.

"Eh heh...." Kagome sweat-dropped. "Well, that was a long time ago," she pointed out. "You're much better now."

Shippo glanced over at the unconscious man, lying against the wall where Inuyasha had dumped him upon their arrival. What if he screwed the spell up and accidentally woke the sorcerer? What if he got his hands on the talisman and controlled everyone, Shippo included. He couldn't bear it if he lost any more parents, especially if it was his own fault. The kit squeaked in fear and shook his head.

"No! I can't do it!" He crossed his arms. "I won't! What if he comes after me? I'm too young to die! There's nothing you can do to make me do it!" He proclaimed loudly.

* * *

Exactly one hour, five lollipops, and a bag full of chocolate later, Shippo was rolling up his little sleeve and glaring slightly at the sorcerer while his knees trembled in fear.

'I'm not scared, I'm not....' He told himself forcefully and swallowed. He turned around to look at Kagome, who was smiling encouragingly at him and nodding. Determined not to let her down, the kit turned back around with a heavy sigh.

Inuyasha had carried the body outside and dumped it by the well so that Shippo had more room to perform the spell. There was also the little fact that if Shippo _did _mess up the spell, Inuyasha could jump right in and kill it easily without the confines of four walls surrounding him.

Sango and Miroku had already left, taking to the skies with Kirara. Shippo had said a reluctant goodbye, wishing that he could go with them instead of performing the spell and staying with Kaede while they were all gone. But, on the bright side, he would be close to the well at all times, and could know within minutes if Kagome or Inuyasha came back.

Shippo's heart began to slow to an even pace as the kit began taking deep, calming breaths. Reaching a shaky hand into his little vest, the kit produced a rather large leaf and pointed it at the sorcerer as if it were a sword, trying to keep him at bay.

"K-Kagome?" Shippo called out shakily.

"Yes?" She replied and took a step forward towards him.

"I need something of yours," the kit responded, not bothering to tear his scared eyes away from the sorcerer. "A hair."

"A hair?" Kagome jutted her head back in surprise. "Alright," she nodded and lifted her hand to reach up for a loose strand in her bangs.

Inuyasha beat her to it, yanking out a few dark hairs from the back of her head before she could respond. Yelping, Kagome blinked back a few tears as she glared at the hanyou, who was walking over to Shippo to hand over the hairs.

"Jerk!" She snapped angrily and rubbed her scalp, wincing in pain.

He growled, handed over the hairs to Shippo and stomped back over to her. "You're not going near it again," he bit out and crossed his arms, stepping beside her once again.

"You didn't have to yank so hard," she protested and continued rubbing her scalp.

"How else are they going to come out?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Shut up," she sighed and went back to watching the kit, praying that his spell would work so that they could take the sorcerer back to her time. A clawed hand reached over and awkwardly pat the spot where the hairs had been yanked out before going back to its former position inside Inuyasha's haori sleeve.

Blushing lightly, she gave him a small smile to show that she forgave him. A bright, glowing blue light alerted Kagome that the spell had already begun. Something akin to a fox fire leapt out of Shippo's hands and the leaf shot out with it to land on the sorcerer's forehead. Kagome leaned in closer to see the few strands of her hair wrapped tightly around the stem of the leaf.

The body began to glow, and Kagome gasped as the large, male body began to shrink and conform to that of her own small, female form. Even the clothes changed, which surprised Kagome, and apparently Inuyasha as well, judging by the shifting next to her.

The transformation was complete, and Shippo fell back on his haunches, gasping for air. Kagome raced forward and scooped the kit up for a tight embrace.

"See?" She smiled at him as he clung tightly to her neck. "I told you you could do it!"

"Yeah," Shippo sighed in relief, his limbs weary and heavy. "But it's only an illusion," he reminded her. "I don't think it'll last very long." He sighed and snuggled against his surrogate mother's neck.

"It doesn't matter," she shook her head and pat his back encouragingly. "As long as we can get it down and through the well, it shouldn't matter what form it's in on the other side."

"Oi!" Inuyasha snapped, hefting the form over his shoulder. "The kit said it wouldn't last long, so let's get moving!"

"Alright," Kagome nodded in agreement before slowly lowering the kit softly to the ground. "Can you get back to Kaede's alright?" She asked him, apprehensive after taking a good look at the exhausted kit's face.

"Yeah," he smiled at her, not wanting his mother to worry. "Don't worry."

"Alright," Kagome replied slowly, biting her lip. She turned back to fine Inuyasha already standing on the edge of the well, an impatient look fixed on his face. She nodded to him and walked over, stroking Shippo's hair as she passed.

"We'll be back," she promised him.

"Damn right!" Inuyasha snapped. "There's no way in hell I'd stay in your time."

Kagome rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Let's go. I'm sure mama is worried that I haven't checked in." More like frantic, she thought to herself and winced. Mama was not going to be pleased with the two of them.

"Keh!" Inuyasha snorted. "Who's fault it that?"

"Don't make me 'it' you into the well!" Kagome snapped. "Jump already!"

"Stupid wench!" Inuyasha spat as he sailed down the well.

"Jerk," Kagome muttered before jumping down after him.

* * *

Heh....sorry that took so long to do. I DO have a life, you know.....really! I swear! .....You still don't believe me, do you?

Bah! Sorry if this chapter sucked, writer's block kills sometimes and this is one of those times. –_This is a filler chapter, the next one will have a whole bunch of explanations and probably reveal who the sorcerer is- _

PLEASE REVIEW or I might take another week to get the next chapter up....hehehe! (evil laugh) And then you shall never know who the sorcerer is.

(passes out cookies and pocky)


	29. Chapter twenty nine

Disclaimer: I would like to say that Inuyasha and the gang to not belong to me. However, since I feed the soooo many cookies, they've decided to let me use them for a fic. Tah HAH!

A/N: Heya! Here I am....writing again....Hopefully this chapter won't suck as bad as the last one....

Thanks for the reviews...I'm hoping for more on this chapter. If I do, maybe I'll work extra hard on chapter 30! (passes out cookies and pocky)

* * *

Kagome felt the time shift take hold of her body and gently float her back down to the earth, landing softly into her own time. Sighing in relief as she glanced at the roof of the well-house, she turned around to find that Shippo's spell had worked.

Inuyasha and the sorcerer were both allowed to pass through, and the sorcerer was still slung over Inuyasha's shoulder, fast asleep. Which was a miracle in itself, Kagome thought to herself. She wasn't sure if the spell from the talisman would still work once they had crossed the boundary between the times.

"Oi," Inuyasha's soft voice reached her and she tore her eyes away from the figure to look into Inuyasha's golden eyes.

"Yeah?" She asked him, unconsciously keeping her voice as low as his.

"Kagome," he breathed her name and she watched nervously as he swallowed visibly. "I want to ask you something," he trailed off, his eyes tearing away from hers to glance at the walls of the well.

"What is it?" She whispered and watched his ears droop slightly. She frowned in response to the droop, wondering what he was thinking. Inuyasha shifted the body on his shoulder and leaned in closer to her face. Oh god, she thought to herself and blushed. What was he doing? Licking her lips in anticipation, she leaned her head in closer to his.

"Can I _please _kill this bastard?"

Kagome blinked once, then twice. She frowned, not sure exactly of what she had just heard. "What?" She asked, incredulous, and jerked her face back.

He growled slightly and leaned back, irritated all of a sudden. "C'mon, I said 'please'," he huffed and rocked back on his heels.

"Ohh," Kagome forced a smile. "Well that makes all the difference. Sure, why not?" She replied sarcastically. "Why not kill Kouga while you're at it, since you asked so politely?"

"Really?!" Inuyasha leaned forward, eager.

"NO!" She shouted in his ear and yanked on a forelock of silver hair. "Are you crazy?!" She turned away from him, not bothering to wait for an answer and began climbing up the ladder inside the well. "C'mon, mama's probably frantic by now," she winced once again.

Inuyasha huffed, then reluctantly followed. "So what do _you _propose we do with this thing?" He growled slightly, dragging his claws across the bastard's thigh and practically dancing in glee as blood ran freely down its leg.

'There,' he thought to himself. 'That's part of your punishment for hurting Kagome.'

_More._ The youkai snarled.

'Later,' Inuyasha replied in an even tone. 'I don't want the bitch to bite my ear off.'

"Oh god," Kagome sighed and leapt out of the well, bringing her hands up to tangle her fingers in her hair. "I don't know...." She trailed off, developing quite the headache.

"KAGOME!"

"Eh?" Kagome blinked as the door to the well house slammed open and her mother nearly toppled her over in a hug. Fighting for her balance, Kagome yelped as she started to tip backwards on the top stair.

Inuyasha leapt forward when he saw their bodies start to tilt and righted them by placing a hand on Kagome's back and shoving them upright. Kagome sent him a grateful smile over her shoulder as she leaned forward to embrace her mother.

"Mama," She buried her face into her mother's neck, grateful for the familiar smell of perfume and cooking to calm her racing heart down. Her eyes began to fill up with tears and she tightened her embrace, willing the tears not to fall. If she started crying, then her mother would start crying, and they would never stop.

It would be Inuyasha torture, she thought to herself with a mental chuckle. Poor hanyou wouldn't know what do to: yell and order them to stop or awkwardly pat their backs and pray that they would eventually tire.

Probably both.

"Mama, I'm so sorry we didn't check in," Kagome apologized, tensing up against her mother and bracing herself for an onslaught of anger. "But that first night after you left, we were lured back to the feudal era...."

"I know," her mother leaned back and beamed at her daughter, nonplussed.

"Eh?" Kagome blinked. Out of all of the responses she had rehearsed out in her head-this was definitely not one of them. "What do you mean, you know?" She demanded. All that time she had spent worrying over calming her mother down, and all she got for her efforts were a nod and a smile?

Kagome huffed, not sure whether to be pleased or not with the recent turn of her mother's mood. You'd think with all that worrying, there'd be _something _she'd have to try and prove to her mother.

"Well," Ms. Higurashi gave her daughter a sheepish grin, oblivious to her daughter's internal battle. "I didn't know at first, and I _was_ frantic that first night. We turned right back around after we didn't receive your phone call the next day and came right back home." She paused and embraced her daughter again, filled with such elation that she was back from the feudal era and unharmed.

"So how did you know where we were?" Kagome blinked at her mother's sudden hug. "We didn't leave a note."

"Taka filled me in," her mother beamed.

"T-TAKA?!" Kagome and Inuyasha both sputtered at the same time, leaning forward in disbelief.

Inuyasha was the first to recover. "What the fuck does that little twerp know?" He demanded with a growl, cracking his knuckles reflexively.

"Oh he knows quite a bit," Ms. Higurashi smiled at the hanyou. "I suggest calming down, your anger will do you no good," she pointed out. "Taka hasn't done anything wrong."

"The hell he hasn't!" Inuyasha exploded. "He walks in, tells you he knows what's going on and you just believe that he has nothing to do with all of it?!" He stared incredulously at Kagome's mother. It suddenly became clear to him where Kagome got her own naïveté.

"Uh huh," her mother nodded, smiling and oblivious to the hanyou's frustration.

Inuyasha growled in response. Great, now the little fucker has got Kagome's mother thinking he's the greatest thing since the invention of the chopstick. What ever happened to intuition? What ever happened to thinking _he _was the greatest thing that ever happened to their little family?

He rocked back on his heels and crossed his arms, glaring at each member of the family present, a low rumble starting to growl in his chest.

"Mama," Kagome intervened before Inuyasha flipped a lid and did something rash. "Taka really isn't the most.... trustworthy of people," she reluctantly replied. "He's kind of.....creepy."

"He does have an air of mystery around him," her mother nodded sagely and both Kagome and Inuyasha nearly face-faulted at her understatement.

Inuyasha growled and shifted the body on his shoulder, feeling it grow heavy as he stood in one place. "Move," he said to Kagome and strode up the stairs, moving past both she and her mother to walk outside and onto the shrine grounds.

"Inuyasha nii-chan!" Souta came running off the porch to race over to his hero as fast as he could. "Is that the bad guy?" He asked breathlessly, eyes shining in admiration for the hanyou.

"Damn right," he dropped the body onto the ground unceremoniously and straightened, popping his shoulder in the process to loosen it up.

Souta cautiously took a step back and peered at it. "It looks like my sister," he blinked in surprise.

"Aa," Inuyasha nodded, crossing his arms. "We had to put a spell on it so that the well would let it back through to this time."

"Oh," Souta blinked again before taking anther step back. "It's....dead, right?"

"No," Inuyasha growled in Kagome's direction, and then became annoyed to see that she was talking to her mother and not paying attention to him. "Your sister won't let me kill it."

"Why not?" Souta frowned in confusion, glancing between the body and his sister to make sure that the one talking to his mother was the real one. He couldn't really tell, of course, but he trusted Inuyasha enough to know that he had brought the right one back unharmed, and the wrong one in a bloody heap.

"That's exactly what I'd like to know!" Inuyasha snapped and glared at Kagome, who was still oblivious to his anger. He growled and watched as she embraced her mother once more.

_Jealous?_

'Aghh! Shut up!' he closed his eyes and shook his head in attempts to shake his youkai voice out.

An image fluttered into his mind abruptly, Kagome spread out on the floor underneath him, and he felt himself flush in remembrance. He hadn't thought much of it before, when it happened, but thinking back now, he couldn't help but wonder why Kagome's unspoken wish turned out the way it did.

Was it her desire to mate with him? He glanced a peek at her from underneath his bangs. Nope, still glaring at him. Well, tough. Enough waiting, he was going drag her away and demand to have his promised 'talk'.

And sometime during that 'talk', he would convince her to let him kill the bastard. Yes, he nodded, it was a sound plan. He would lay down the demand and she would comply.

Walking over to Kagome with an arrogant stride, he took hold of her arm and dragged her towards the well house.

"Watch that bastard," he threw to Souta over his shoulder. "He won't move, but make sure nobody touches him!"

"I will!" Souta puffed out his chest, determined to make his hero proud of him. "Don't you worry, Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes and dragged a protesting Kagome through the doors before turning around and sliding them shut. He turned around and leaned against them, sighing heavily and cracking one eye open to glare at her.

She was glaring back, just as ticked off as he was. "What are you doing? Why are we here?" She snapped and frowned, irritable from lack of sleep.

"You. Me. Talk," He bit out each word, punctuating each and every one of them with a soft jab in her shoulder. "Here or in the past?" He asked her, already knowing the answer.

"Here!" She blurted out all at once. "What happens if that thing wakes up and we're not here?" She demanded to know, worried for her family's safety.

"It won't," Inuyasha shrugged, confident. He pulled away from the doors and grabbed a fistful of her shirt, gently leading her down the stairs so that they had better privacy. He nudged her until she was seated on the bottom step and then sat atop the rim of the well himself, getting as comfortable as he could on the unforgiving wooden surface.

"You could have just asked me to move," Kagome grumbled in protest and leaned heavily on her hand, which was situated atop her knee at the elbow.

"Would you have moved without an argument?" He shot back and raised an eyebrow at her.

She frowned and glared at him. "Did you want something?"

"Yes," he nodded, crossing his arms and swallowing. Great, he thought to himself. How was he going to word this....

_Do you want to fuck me as much as I want to fuck you? _His youkai side offered sardonically from the inner recesses of his mind.

"Shut it," he voices aloud, then winced when he heard the words come out.

"Eh?" Kagome blinked at him. "What?"

"Back at the shrine....." Inuyasha blurted out. "When I came to, I was on top of you and trying to....er....undo my hakama." He flushed slightly, then cursed himself for it. "Why was that? What was your 'unspoken wish' on the talisman?" He glanced up at her through his bangs and pinned her with his molten eyes.

Kagome sighed, knowing this little talk would come about. "I....I want you," she admitted, a large blush settling across her whole face. "And....the woman in the talisman said that even though I didn't voice it aloud, she was going to make it happen anyway."

"Yes, we've been through all that," Inuyasha frowned at her. So she did want him. Well.....it was obvious that she did, given their previous experience together back in her room, never mind the fact that she asked him to mark her as his own mate.

He growled to himself, torn. The claim hadn't been solidified yet, and wouldn't until the mating process was complete. But to do that.....it would put Kagome in danger. If Naraku found out about their mated status, he could use that to his own gain, and manipulate the two of them like he did fifty years ago, with Kikyo. The last thing Inuyasha wanted was another mistake like that.

Kikyo....he swallowed to himself. Kikyo was nice, and kind to him. But....she never really accepted him wholly, as a hanyou. She wanted him to become human for her, using the shikon jewel. As much as he claimed to want to become human himself, it tore a little patch of his heart away to know that the woman he had come to adore would only love him circumstantially.

With situations as they were, he left it alone and pushed those feelings in the back of his mind, determined to use the jewel to become human for both Kikyo and himself. But now that all of that was in the past, he had come to know Kagome.

As much as everyone claimed to know that Inuyasha saw them both as one in the same, with Kagome as just a reincarnation, he really didn't. They didn't even smell the same to him. And while he had thought they looked similar at first, he couldn't mistake one for the other now. Kikyo was Kikyo. And Kagome is Kagome.

He glanced up at Kagome through his bangs once more and swallowed. Why the hell couldn't be have said that out loud? What was really holding him back from being with Kagome? Naraku? Or himself?

"Inuyasha?"

He jerked his head up to meet her concerned gaze. "Hn?"

"If...." He watched as she swallowed heavily. "If you don't want to be mated to me anymore...." She trailed off reluctantly, a blush forming across the bridge her nose.

"Fuck!" Inuyasha growled and slammed his palm down on the wooden rim of the well. "I don't want to hear you talk like that!" He snarled at her, a little more viciously than he originally intended. "Of _course _I do!" He shouted.

Kagome jerked her head back in surprise. A simple 'Stop talking' she had expected....but that last proclamation? Tears welled up in her eyes and she smiled, realizing that it was as close to an 'I love you' as she could get with Inuyasha. He just wasn't good at vocalizing his feelings.

"Thanks," she whispered and nervously clapped her hands together absently, rocking her body back and forth on the bottom step, willing him to say something and break the uncomfortable silence.

"Keh!" He snorted and watched with amusement as she began to emulate a nervous scent. The youkai in him pressed him to slid off the rim and crouch in front of her, his scent overwhelming hers and marking her with a scent claim once again.

He leaned in closer and softly licked the underside of her chin once, letting her know that he was there, and grateful for her presence. She was his alpha, he smirked, and leaned in for a soft kiss on the corner of her mouth.

Kagome swallowed and felt her body grow heavy with relief. Back to licks and nuzzles, she grinned softly, and leaned in to stroke the side of his cheek with her own. Now this language the both of them could understand, and get across to each other way more feelings and emotions than they could with words.

"My mate," Inuyasha rumbled slightly in her ear, his hot breath on her skin making her shiver and lean instinctively towards him.

Then again, maybe not.

"Yours," she shyly admitted and pressed a quick kiss on his shoulder before leaning back with a blush. They had been intimate, sure, but for some reason, whenever he was affectionate towards her, she couldn't help but blush and become nervous. Perhaps it was because these moments occurred only fleetingly and few in between, so she was not accustomed to them yet.

"What do we do?" She asked him, leaning her cheek against his with a sigh.

He accepted her weight with no trouble at all, and reached down to nudge her hand. She responded almost immediately this time, taking hold of his hand and squeezing it with her own. He growled, letting her know he was pleased that she had caught on so quickly with a soft lick to the cheek.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"Well," she swallowed and mentally prepared herself for her next words. "Do we wait until after Naraku is gone?"

Inuyasha tensed and closed his eyes, opening his mouth to answer-

"Because I don't think I can wait that long," the whispered admission came like a punch in the gut and his breath left him in a 'whoosh'.

"You....can't?" He tried to work the moisture back into his mouth as his tongue grew to feel heavy to lift.

"Well...." She hung her head a bit lower. "I'm not saying I'll....leave you or anything if you say we have to....."

"Damn right you won't," Inuyasha growled and bit her earlobe softly. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, savoring the sweet fragrance that was Kagome. He wanted nothing more than to bury his nose into her hair and stay there forever with that intoxicating scent.

Kagome coughed lightly, alerting him to the fact that he still hadn't answered. He growled at the reminder and bit her earlobe a little rougher this time, letting her know that the reminder was not appreciated.

"I don't want to wait either," he admitted with a growl. "My youkai blood is killing me about this. He won't shut up!" He snapped.

Kagome giggled softly. "Is that why it seems like you're talking to yourself?"

"You think this is funny?" He raised an eyebrow and flicked her thigh with his claw. "It's not. Both he and I want you....now," he panted as heat pooled into his lower belly.

"Now?" Kagome's eyes flew open. "But we're in the well house!" She exclaimed.

"I know," he groaned and shifted to move against her. "And not to mention the fact that your mother is listening in at the door...."

"She WHAT?!" Kagome leapt up and away from the hanyou, her heart facing at a hundred kilometers an hour. She slowly turned towards the door and nearly leapt out of her skin when she saw her mother holding up a glass to the slatted door.

"Do you hear anything?" She heard her brother ask excitedly from behind her mother.

"Shhh...." Her mother held a finger to her lips and frowned, trying to concentrate.

Kagome felt herself sweat-drop. 'And I come from this family?' She asked herself with a groan as her head fell atop the last step gracefully in a dramatic gesture.

"Ms. Higurashi! LOOK OUT!" A voice that sounded suspiciously like Taka's rang out throughout the shrine, causing Kagome to leap up to her feet.

"Wha-?" Was all she got out before a blast ripped through the door, missing her mother's form by inches. The broken wood pieces blasted towards her and Kagome shrieked, closing her eyes and turning her face away.

She felt Inuyasha leap forward and throw his haori-clad arms around her head, protecting her from the wood splinters. She leaned into him gratefully until the blast died down.

"Mama!" She wriggled out of Inuyasha's grasp and tried to run towards her mother to make sure she wasn't hurt, but Inuyasha caught her easily, forcing her body behind his own as he leapt out the broken door, tetsusaiga at hand.

"Get back!" He shouted to Souta and Kagome's mother once his eyes had scanned over their bodies, satisfied that they weren't harmed.

"Oh god," Kagome moaned as she looked over Inuyasha's shoulder wide-eyed to the figure standing ten feet away from them, arm outstretched and cackling with energy. "It's awake!"

* * *

Bwahahaha! Evil cliffhanger! (dodges various fruits and vegetables)

Whaaat? It was better than the last chapter, right? PLEASE REVIEW!

(passes out cookies)


	30. Chapter thirty

Disclaimer: I disclaim the fact that my butt hurts. (And Inuyasha doesn't belong to me.)

A/N: Yay! Thanks SO MUCH for all of your wonderful reviews. I really think that last chapter has become my favorite...LOL. (Runner up: Chapter 16!) Annyways, please keep up the reviews, and I shall keep the humor and romance flowing!

Thanks guys! (passes out cookies and pocky)

* * *

"Why the _fuck _is it awake?!" Inuyasha snarled and gripped his hands tighter around the tetsusaiga.

"I don't know!" Kagome cried out from behind him, her panic and fear emulating from her scent, causing Inuyasha to growl threateningly at the figure in front of him.

"Kagome?" Ms. Higurashi blinked from her sprawled-out position on the floor. "What happened?"

"The sorcerer is awake," Kagome quickly told her. "We'll take care of this, just please," she begged her mother, "Go in the house."

"Higurashi-san!" A figure quickly followed the voice as Taka, still dressed in a school uniform, threw himself from the porch to run over to her mother's side.

Inuyasha growled as the boy came near, but didn't dare remove his eyes from the immediate threat in front of him. He threw an arm back and pulled Kagome closer to him and slightly to his side, as far away as she could get from Taka without leaving his protection.

"You really should have been paying attention," Kagome's voice floated out of the sorcerer's body, twisted and menacing all at the same time. "Did you really think the spell was going to hold with the talisman still 500 years in the past?" It spat in anger, apparently frustrated that it had been held under a spell in the first place.

"Keh!" Inuyasha bit out a short, barking laugh. "I don't need the fucking talisman to rip you to shreds," he clutched his fang and shifted his feet into the proper position.

The sorcerer narrowed its Kagome-like eyes. "A mere half-demon claims to be more powerful than I?" It raised an eyebrow in a mocking manner as its gaze shifted from Inuyasha to Kagome. "Obviously some masters are incapable of keeping their dogs on a leash, where they should be."

Kagome gasped in sudden anger and clutched at the back of Inuyasha's haori. She narrowed her eyes at the imposter. She tried to come up with a good retort, but unfortunately for Kagome, quick comments were not her forte....unless it was directed at Inuyasha.

"Shut up!" She shouted, and winced at the pathetic retort she had just made. Growling at her own inability to vocalize her feelings, she tore another comment into the scene. "You're lucky I don't have my bow and arrows, or I'd-,"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes and spared her from embarrassing herself even further with the lame-ass remarks. "Shut it already!" He shouted across to the imposter. "Isn't this the part where you boast your strength and we fight?" He assumed a bored stance, but anyone with a trained eye could tell that he was still ready to spring forward at any moment.

The sorcerer smirked and drew a katana out from the cackling energy that had formed around the area near its fist. Ripping the sharpened blade through the energy, it dispersed and sent sparks flying in Inuyasha's direction, landing softly on his fire rat haori.

A spark landed on his cheek, but the hanyou paid it no mind, welcoming the pain and embracing the anger that flowed through his veins. He felt Kagome quickly reach up and brush the hot ember away from his skin and yelp slightly from the pain it brought on her own finger.

He smirked and nearly rolled his eyes at his bitch. She couldn't just leave it well enough alone, could she? Keeping his eyes on the enemy, he quickly reached back and grasped her hand, licking once at the injured area.

His eyebrows raised as the imposter began to growl low in its throat, and clenched its fists, glaring daggers at him. It growled some more as he saw that Inuyasha hadn't let go of Kagome's hand.

Inuyasha let loose a growl himself. Kagome was _his _bitch, damnit. No one else's, and he could touch her whenever he damn well pleased.

Slowly, and mockingly, he lifted her hand once more and lapped at her injured skin once again, raising an eyebrow in challenge to the enemy in front of him.

'Kagome's mine,' he snarled in his head. 'You want to fight over it?' He let go of her hand, practically feeling the blush on her face through the layers of his haori as she stood near his shoulder. The youkai inside him was both enraged and almost gleeful at the same time.

He'd gladly fight any rivals for his mate, if only just to prove once again that strong enough to protect her. He'd affirm his status not only to his pack, but to his mate, as well.

"Kaze no Kisu!" Inuyasha let loose a battle cry without warning, swinging the tetsusaiga down in an arc and watching with fascination as the blast ripped its way across the space between them.

"I don't think so!" Kagome's voice came out of the imposter's lips as it leapt away from the blast, watching as it hit a nearby statue and ripped it to shreds.

"No! Not the statue! It has it's own legend!" Inuyasha heard Kagome's grandfather cry out from the porch and rolled his eyes at the stupid jiji.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha shouted to the girl behind him. "Get your family in the house-NOW!"

"Right!" She nodded and ran to her mother's side, frantic with worry. "C'mon mama," Kagome urged as she slid a hand behind her mother's shoulder.

"Souta," Ms. Higurashi said in a firm voice. "Run into the house, and make sure that grandpa comes with you. Make sure he stays in there," Her eyes bore into her son's, willing him to understand the gravity of the situation.

"Mama, you're going with them," Kagome protested once she realized that her mother had decided not to go inside the house.

"No, I'm not," her mother's face bore an expression of determination. "I'm going to get you a bow and some arrows."

"Mama!" Kagome cried out, exasperated. "I can get them myself!"

"It's locked in the storage area," her mother reminded her.

"I know!" Kagome flinched as another shout and crash ripped out from behind her. "I _am _able to unlock it, you know!"

"Not with a usual lock, Kagome," her mother lifted herself to her feet, ignoring both Taka and Kagome's proffered hands. She turned to look at Taka with a questioning look, which he answered with a nod.

"What's going on?" Kagome cried, more confused than ever. Why was her mother silently communicating with Taka? What the hell had happened while she was gone?

Ms. Higurashi turned to face her daughter, all traces of previous humor gone from her face, leaving only seriousness. "Kagome, it's been sealed for a very long time." She reached out and took hold of her daughter's shoulders, gazing deep into her eyes. "And while I know that you've been gradually learning how to break seals, I've been living at this shrine my whole life. I know how to do it."

Kagome swallowed. "Why is it sealed?" She frowned and shook her head in confusion. "Doesn't grandpa keep a spare bow in the storage?"

"This is a special bow," her mother replied, a soft smile appearing on her face. "Now, listen," she said as another blast ripped out behind her and Inuyasha's strangled cry echoed around the shrine grounds. Kagome flinched, knowing it was probably hit and bleeding. "I'll go and get the bow, but I need you to take these and seal the front door to keep Souta and grandpa safe. I don't know how to seal the door," she admitted with a sheepish grin, revealing the true reason why she wanted to get the bow.

Kagome watched with interest as Taka produced a few ofuda from inside his uniform jacket and handed them wordlessly to her mother. Her mother, in turn, then handed them to Kagome and gave her a little nudge towards the house.

"Go," she urged, and then turned to walk quickly towards the store room, keeping one eye on the battle in case it came near her.

"Arrghh!" Kagome cried out, bewildered by the strange turn of events. So Taka was....helping them now? She glanced once at the boy, who stood motionless watching the battle with interest. "What the hell are you doing?" She asked him, not caring if she swore aloud anymore.

"Waiting," the soft reply came.

"For what?!" She shouted, wishing she could just reach over and shake the statue of a boy.

In response, Taka lifted his hand to reveal a seal in his hand. A rather powerful one, by the look of the symbols, Kagome thought to herself. What was he planning to do? And how could he do it?

Grandpa couldn't even seal Myouga if he wanted to, and he'd been practicing on the shrine all his life. Her mama could only do basic stuff. What the hell did Taka think he was doing?

Kagome groaned as she finally took off running towards the front door, eager to seal the door quickly and help Inuyasha as fast as she could. Would Taka seal the sorcerer away? Or, she thought as her heart raced, was he planning on sealing _Inuyasha? _Could they trust him?

She leapt onto the porch and ran to the door, grasping the first seal in her hand. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and let it out slowly, allowing her miko powers to awaken the seal that lie imbedded in the paper. Satisfied that it would hold, she whipped it onto the middle of the door itself.

She continued with the other four ofuda, activating their magic and placing them on all four sides of the door frame. Once the task was completed, she hurriedly leapt from the porch and scanned the grounds.

Inuyasha had his back to her, and as she had suspected earlier, his shoulder was heavily bleeding. Nonetheless, his stance never wavered, and he faced off the imposer as if the injury barely scratched him, as always.

The imposter, using her body, was barely panting for breath, and as far as Kagome could tell, didn't have any wounds on it.

"Kagome!" Her mother came racing from behind the well house, having took the long way around the battle. In her outstretched hand, she held a ratty looking bow and a quiver of arrows.

"Thanks!" Kagome replied to her mother distractedly as she grabbed the quiver from her grasp and placed it on her body. A loud blast roared a few feet away from her, and Kagome gasped as she looked up. Inuyasha had barely gotten his tetsusaiga there in time to block the blast of energy that was meant for her mother.

Looking up, Kagome's eyes met that of her imposter, and glared at its gloating smirk. Anger like she'd never know reared its ugly head inside of her body and she ripped the bow from her mother's grasp, already notching an arrow.

He had threatened her family before, her adoptive family back in the past. He had threatened to harm little Shippo, the kit she had come to care and provide for. But now he was threatening her biological family, and that was not going to sit well with her.

Protective instincts went amok as she loosed the arrow, intent on pinning it's body to the tree just beyond. Something rang in her mind as the bow made a familiar 'twang' just moments after the arrow had left it. She frowned and looked a little closer at the bow, taking in a careful stock of each scratch and nick on its surface.

It was the small nick near her thumb that made her body stiffen in recognition.

"Mama!" She shouted to her mother as she watched the sorcerer dodge the arrow easily. "Where did you get this bow?" She asked and reached for another arrow.

"Can we talk _later_?" Inuyasha snarled as her arrow missed its target. "If we don't kill this thing soon, your precious shrine will be reduced to useless rocks!"

"And rightfully so," the sorcerer narrowed its eyes at Inuyasha first, and then Kagome. "It's a fitting punishment for taking away what is mine! The talisman is _mine_!" It snarled and began to call energy to its body, preparing for another attack.

"Alright, this is-," Inuyasha was cut off abruptly as Taka slid stealthily in front of his body, preventing him for letting loose another wind scar.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing!?" He roared and tried to lift his sword and move the idiot out of the way at the same time.

"Wait," Taka replied, his voice soft and even.

It make Inuyasha want to cut right through him. "Wait for what?!" Inuyasha exclaimed loudly.

"Kagome," Taka called out, his back still facing her.

Inuyasha growled.

"Yes?" Kagome replied, startled that he was talking to her as she was positioning her next arrow.

"I'm going to throw this at him," Taka replied, motioning to the ofuda. "You're going to hit it with your arrow and pin it to its body."

Inuyasha snarled and saw red. "Don't tell my mate what to do!"

"And what do you propose?" Taka turned around and raised an eyebrow at the hanyou.

Inuyasha growled at him. "Kagome?" He called out, his eyes never leaving Taka's. "Shoot the damn arrow, you got that?"

Kagome sighed and rolled her eyes. "Yes, Master."

"Keh!" Inuyasha smirked and watched as Taka broke the connection first, turning back around and preparing to throw the ofuda.

Kagome held her breath and kept her eyes open, waiting for the small scrap of paper to be throw in the air. She had gotten much better with the bow, sure, but this was a little advanced, she mentally winced. Hitting a small scrap of paper and pinning it to a _moving_ body?

"Oh, Kami," she prayed and watched as the paper left Taka's hands. Time seemed to slow down as she took careful aim and loosed the arrow, keeping her eyes on the target the entire time.

The blast nearly blinded her, and she struggled to keep her eyes open when it hit, but the pain won out, and she turned her head away. A moment later, she felt her mother step up next to her and a warm body shield both of them from behind her. She groaned in pain and grasped onto the shoulder of Inuyasha's haori, silently thanking him for protecting her mother as well.

Inuyasha winced as a piece of debris leapt up and bit into his injured shoulder. Gritting his teeth, he leaned forward and buried his nose into Kagome's soft hair, inhaling her soothing fragrance. He tucked Kagome's mother a little further next to her daughter, afraid that she'd be hit with the flying debris as well.

He waited out the long minute or so that it took for the blast to calm down impatiently. It ate at him from inside to know that his enemy could stab him in the back any moment now and he couldn't do anything about it because he wouldn't be able to see.

The moment that the blast had cleared, he spun around on his heel, one hand ready on the tetsusaiga, and his ears flipping every which way, searching out possible threats.

The dust died down and Inuyasha could see Taka's frame, slightly hunched over to avoid the previous blast. He snorted and came up next to him just as the boy was straightening.

"Is it sealed?" Taka asked breathlessly, his eyes searching out through the haze.

"Aa," Inuyasha nodded, spotting the ground lying on its back a few feet away. "Is it dead?" He asked.

"No, just sealed."

"It's not in Kagome's form anymore," Inuyasha remarked and took a step forwards the body.

"It's his true form," Taka stepped forward with him.

"Alright," Inuyasha cracked his knuckles. "Let's see who this fucker is."

"I doubt you'd recognize her," Taka remarked as he stepped over the fallen statue that Kagome's grandfather had cried about earlier. "Although she is from the feudal era."

"SHE?!" Inuyasha leapt over the statue to face the figure lying on the ground. Sure enough, a small, female figure was lying face down in Kagome's uniform amidst the rubble.

"Yes," Taka nodded and explained. "Though she merged with a demon when she was younger, and it caused somewhat of a split-personality between the two of them. He, the demon that is, is usually the one most present. She's only a body."

"So she wasn't behind all this," Inuyasha glared menacingly down at the body.

"No, not really," Taka sighed. "The demon is the problem here, but now that they're both sealed we can take them back to headquarters." He leaned down so pick the body up, but Inuyasha's hand shot out and grabbed Taka's arm before he could touch her.

"No," He growled. "First I want an explanation."

Taka nodded reluctantly. "Help me get this thing back to headquarters so that I can put it under lock and seal and then I will explain everything to you."

"Will Mr. Shiguro be coming back as well?" Kagome's mother asked wearily as she walked up behind them.

Taka nodded. "I'll have him come along as well, to help me explain everything to these two," he nodded to both Inuyasha and Kagome.

Kagome sidled up to Inuyasha, her hands hovering slightly over his arm. "We need to clean you up first," she murmured absently.

"You too," Inuyasha glared at the blood-stained sleeve on her shirt, mentally kicking himself for not cleaning it up earlier.

"Okay," Kagome's mother sighed, rubbing her forehead. "A lot to do, so let's get to it."

"Yeah," Kagome agreed, leaning into Inuyasha's body for a half-hug. She nuzzled the side of his neck and quickly leaned away before her mother could notice.

Inuyasha smirked, not caring whether her other saw. Hell, she thought they were mating....which they weren't.....though they would, he growled possessively. He leaned down and licked the licked the side of her cheek that was clean, not really caring for a taste of dirt.

Kagome blushed and swallowed, looking back and forth between Inuyasha's heated gaze and her mother's amused face. "Erm," she started out. "This isn't what it looks like...."

"Don't worry," her mother smiled. "I know all about you two."

"Er," Kagome blushed harder, leaning back against Inuyasha's chest in attempts to hide herself-although not very well. "You do?"

"Of course," her mother beamed. "I heard you two going at it the other day in your room."

"Oh ho?" Taka raised an eyebrow and turned his amused face to Kagome, the first sign of emotion he'd shown in the whole time she knew him.

"No!" Kagome shouted, exasperated. "We weren't! We didn't!" She looked up to the hanyou behind her. "Tell them we didn't!"

Inuyasha growled at the sudden unwanted attention he was getting.

Kagome groaned in frustration and hid her face inside Inuyasha's haori, away from her giggling mother. 'Why me?'

* * *

Next chapter: NOT THE LAST ONE! It will, however, be a FULL explanation on the sorcerer dude/dudette (lol) and how and why she/he came to want the talisman, and also WHY TAKA knows so much about the whole series of events.

There will be another LEMON, by the way, probably after this next chapter coming out. This next chapter will probably be the second to last, and then the ending chapter where Kagome and Inuyasha tie everything up between them.

Thank you sooo much for the reviews! PLEASE KEEP THEM COMING!

I will probably do another looong fic after this one, I just have to think up of an original idea first. I'll keep you guys posted about it.... PLEASE REVIEW!


	31. Chapter thirty one

Disclaimer: Inuyasha doesn't belong to me. Unfortunately, he belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

A/N: Heya! Okay....chapter 31, as promised! THANKS so much for the reviews! They really made my day!

(passes out cookies)

I would like to dedicate this chapter to KCAMP, who keeps reviewing: "Are you going to update yet?"

Yes, my friend, this one's for you. : )

* * *

The watch on Ms. Higurashi's wrist beeped loudly in the near-silent room, causing Inuyasha to jump, startled, and start looking around for the source of the sharp noise. Growling softly when he couldn't find it, he settled back with a huff on his cushion, which was situated at the low, formal table. Kagome, on his right, gave him an amused look before turning back to face the table's occupants.

Souta and Jii-chan, having heard the tale before, were not present at the time, giving the people at the table ample room for comfortable discussion. Kagome's mother was situated on Inuyasha's left, leaving Taka and Mr. Shiguro to sit opposite them.

Inuyasha glared at the pair across from him, willing one of them to speak. All this sitting around was numbing his backside, and he was _not_ happy about it.

It had taken him no time at all to haul the demon's body, in the form of the young girl, back to what Taka had called 'headquarters'. With the body slung over his shoulder, he refused to ride in the car with the other men and instead followed alongside the red contraption, keeping his leaps within the high trees that lined the road.

Once they had arrived, Taka instructed Inuyasha to place the demon inside a special room, explaining that certain wards and locks were on the door to ensure that it couldn't escape. Growling over the fact that he was taking orders from the wimpy human, Inuyasha stomped inside the room and placed the female body down on the simple futon that lay inside.

Glancing at her leg, he winced at the sight of dried blood that surrounded the area that his claws had punctured. Lowering his ears, he slowly swallowed. He'd never hurt a female before, and the weight of his actions pressed down on him.

_Hurt mate, _his youkai side growled.

'I know, but the female had nothing to do with it,' Inuyasha sighed mentally.

_Hurt mate._

'Yeah, yeah, I get it already, shut up' Inuyasha frowned. 'But I still wish I hadn't hurt the female.'

He returned back to the shrine the same way he had come, refusing to get back into a 'car'. Once was enough, and Kagome should feel lucky that he accompanied her to the police station in one. The noise and smell of it hurt his senses.

They had returned in no time at all, and were promptly ushered into the dining room by Ms. Higurashi herself, where Kagome was already seated. Inuyasha made a beeline for the young girl, immediately sitting down next to her and glaring at the other men, as if daring them to even sit _near _his mate. Thankfully, they moved to the other side of the growling hanyou.

Once he was situated, Taka had set up what Kagome had called a 'laptop' on the table, and a constant tapping and clicking noise had started the moment he lifted the top half of the strange box. Inuyasha couldn't tell what the hell he was doing, but he did know that the noise was getting on his nerves. He could feel his eyebrow twitching in annoyance as he waited for them to begin explaining.

His ears caught the sound of Kagome's soft sigh and he smirked. The bitch was getting impatient as well.

Mr. Shiguro, a man in his forties with a slight balding head and a thick middle, rapped his fingers impatiently against the table and sighed, turning to half-glare at Taka.

"Can you do your 'official' records later?" He asked impatiently.

Inuyasha smirked at the older man's tone and watched as Taka made a few more 'taps' before half closing the contraption. He turned his attention towards Inuyasha and Kagome, neatly folding his hands on the table in front of him.

"Where would you like us to begin?" Taka asked in a calm voice, his cool, professional manner never wavering. The hanyou snorted angrily at the obviously fake façade.

"How about the beginning," Inuyasha replied tersely, his eyebrow twitching like mad at the other man's impudence.

It was Mr. Shiguro who replied with a weary sigh. "Well, you see," he began hesitantly, glancing at the impatient hanyou as if he were waiting for permission to speak out loud. "Technically this all began 500 years ago."

Kagome felt herself blink in confusion for what seemed like the thousandth time that week. "Eh?"

"What Mr. Shiguro means," Taka clarified for the group, "is that our organization was founded 500 years ago. We are the descendants of the village that once guarded the crimson talisman."

"You guys are still alive?" Inuyasha grumbled, raising an eyebrow in a bored fashion.

"Not a whole lot of people are in the organization, you understand," Mr. Shiguro spoke up. "While the duty falls from parent to child, a great many of the descendants refuse to join due to the fact that they all think we're slightly crazy," he shrugged, giving both Kagome and her mother a sheepish grin.

"I wonder what gave them that impression," Inuyasha muttered, then grunted as Kagome elbowed him in the side and sent him a withering glare out of the corner of her eye.

"Perhaps you should explain why your group still exists," Ms. Higurashi spoke up from her silence to offer some help.

"Yes, well," Taka shifted on his cushion. "The group was founded after the talisman left the village," he explained, turning his eyes to Kagome, which in turn made Inuyasha growl protectively and yank her cushion closer to his.

Taka ignored the action and continued talking. "Nobody really knew why or how the talisman came to disappear, but later on in the years, writings from an old man's journal were found inside a deserted hut. Inside, it explained exactly how the talisman left the village's protection," Taka turned to face Kagome once again. "It left in the hands of a young miko."

Kagome swallowed and hung her head sheepishly, remembering how she had taken the talisman. "The journal's owner....was Makoto-san?" She asked hesitantly and watched as Taka slowly nodded his head.

"Keh! Fucking jiji," Inuyasha crossed his arms defiantly and turned his head away.

"Well, you see," Taka continued on, his voice even and professional. "After the talisman was gone, the village needed to pretend that it was still there. After all, they weren't sure if the talisman was being properly protected or not, so it was simpler to just pretend that it was still within their grasp. The demons would go after their village, and not after the young miko who possessed the dangerous artifact."

"Makes sense," Kagome nodded slowly. "Sneak something valuable out the back door and have the enemy continue to assault the front gates."

"Exactly," Mr. Shiguro nodded. "But unfortunately, after a couple of years, the same demon you just fought got past the barrier and destroyed nearly the entire village, the shrine included."

Kagome gave a soft gasp and covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh god," she moaned, remembering all of the smiling faces of the happy villagers. They were so peaceful, she remembered from what little she saw of them while she was being dragged though the village.

Mr. Shiguro nodded in sympathy, attempting to reach over and take one of her hands in his own. A threatening growl made his arm hairs stand on end and he slowly backed away, settling back onto his cushion. "Yes," he nodded, swallowing slightly. "It was very tragic."

"However," Taka pressed on, despite the dramatics being shown at the small table. "A few of them survived, and formed a tight band of loyalty to one another."

"So they rebuilt the village?" Kagome leaned forward against the edge of the table, hopeful.

"No," Taka shook his head, watching as Kagome's face fell with a slight amused look. "They moved on to live in another nearby village, but kept mainly to themselves."

"What about the demon who was after the talisman?" Inuyasha asked gruffly, trying to cover up his curiosity by scratching his neck in a bored fashion. "I'm betting he sure as hell didn't just forget about it."

"Well, in a sense, he did," Mr. Shiguro coughed lightly. "He disappeared for a few years after that, supposedly licking his own wounds."

"Nearly everybody thought that the entire village was wiped out. And since the talisman was never found, both humans and demons began to believe that there never was a talisman to begin with," Taka continued.

"That explains why it wasn't mentioned in my texts!" Kagome's eyes widened in realization as she leaned back slightly.

"Right," Taka nodded. "After a while, everybody forgot about the talisman. Even the legend behind it began to fade with time."

"Everyone except for your group," Ms. Higurashi supplied from her silent observation.

"Right," Mr. Shiguro nodded, smiling at the woman, happy that she had listened to them the first time they explained it to her.

"Okay," Kagome said slowly, frowning slightly in confusion. Reaching up, she began rubbing her forehead where a slight headache was starting to form. "That explains why you're here, but it doesn't explain how you know so much about us, or the well for that matter," she added quickly.

"Well, to explain that, we need to give you a little more background information," Taka replied with a slight shrug.

Inuyasha growled, furious that he had to sit for longer than he thought it would be. "All this background info isn't getting us anywhere! Just tell us how you know about the well!" He demanded, slamming a hand down on the table.

"Inuyasha," Kagome placed a hand on his arm. "Calm down," she leaned in and quickly nuzzled his arm, her body pliant against his. She knew instinctively that it was a way of calming his youkai blood down. Asking Inuyasha to sit at a table with two other males would be like asking three starved wolves to share a single piece of meat.

It just wasn't going to happen.

Kagome felt herself sweat-drop at her own scenario and thanked all the Kami that he hadn't started fighting with them yet.

Inuyasha huffed and relaxed his stance a bit, still furious with the two males, but complying with his mate's wishes. "Keh," he grumbled defiantly and crossed his arms, a sign of reluctant compliance.

"I think I'll go make some tea," Ms. Higurashi read the situation for what it was and stood up, glancing at the hanyou with an amused look. "And maybe I'll make some ramen for Inuyasha."

His ears perked up at the mention of ramen and he told himself that he could sit the little while longer. Only for the ramen, he reminded himself.

_Fucker, _the youkai spat. _Fight rival males._

'Shut it, I want to eat my goddamn ramen in peace.' He retorted mentally. 'I'll beat 'em up later if they're still blathering on.' He chuckled darkly out loud, receiving more than a few concerned looks from people around the table. He growled at them all and gave Taka a look that clearly stated 'move on with it, baka!'.

"About two years ago," Taka continued, frowning at the hanyou's demand, but complying anyway. "A demon killed both my parents, believing that they held the talisman in their possession."

Kagome gasped again. "Taka...." She tried to reach out and take his hand, but Inuyasha was quicker, grasping her hand before she could even lift it from her lap. Clearing her throat, she looked back up at Taka's face and swallowed, lowering her head.

So many people died, and it was all because she took the talisman out of the village. The entire _village _was destroyed. Taka's own parents were murdered because she thought it was her responsibility to get rid of the cursed object.

A familiar burning sensation began in her eyes and she coughed, trying to blink the tears away. Now was not the time to feel sorry about herself and her actions. Hell, it was Taka's parents who died, and he wasn't even crying about the not-so-gentle reminder. Which was odd to her in a way. But, she thought, maybe that's why his personality is the way it is. Taka buries any feelings or emotions he's harbored because the grief of losing his own parents was too much for him. Unbeknownst to Taka himself, Kagome sighed and gazed at him, eyes full of warmth and sympathy.

Inuyasha felt himself become sick.

"Oi!" He squeezed her hand roughly, annoyed that she was showing some other male any kind of sympathy. "Quit it already!"

Kagome narrowed her eyes and glared at him, her eyes promising retribution later. He gulped slightly and lowered his ears at the withering glare. Yeah, he thought to himself, _that _look had 'osuwari' written all over it.

Taka coughed lightly. "Moving on," he straightened his spine. "That same night, the demon I mentioned was eventually captured after a very long chase. We sedated it with a very powerful spell, one that took the strength of nearly all the members of the organization."

"Yes," Mr. Shiguro nodded. "I remember that night," he shuddered at the memory of it. "I also remember being drained for three days after that spell."

Taka nodded. "We were all out of commission for nearly a week."

"What happened to the demon?" Kagome leaned forward, enraptured by the tale.

"We brought it back to headquarters-,"

"Ahem."

"The office in the basement," Taka corrected with a slightly annoyed tone. "And from there, we kept it in a locked, and heavily sealed room."

"What for?" Inuyasha snorted. "Why not just kill it?"

"We would have," Taka replied. "But on it's person, we found a small journal hidden away within layers of clothing, and we were curious."

"It's always a journal, isn't it?" Mr. Shiguro sighed and chuckled, watching as Ms. Higurashi re-entered the room with a tray of drinks and a bowl of ramen.

"Do you want to finish the tale?" Taka turned to the older man and raised an eyebrow.

"No," Mr. Shiguro waved a hand dismissively as he accepted a cup of tea from Kagome's mother. "You go on ahead."

Taka glared at the man for a moment before sighing and continuing. "It took us quite a while to get through the whole of the journal, due to its horrendous handwriting. We took a sample of the page and had it dated to quite recent years, which makes sense because not a lot of people knew how to read or write in the feudal era."

Inuyasha shifted on his cushion as the topic hit a little too close to home. Kagome sent him an encouraging smile and squeezed his hand, which had never left hers after she had tried to reach for Taka.

"The demon wrote nearly everything," Mr. Shiguro cut in, blowing softly on his hot tea. "It took us days just to sort through the mess."

"It was born in the village," Taka said quietly, watching as the two figures across from his stiffened slightly.

"Your ancestor's village?" Kagome blinked and leaned forward, curious.

Taka nodded slowly. "In her younger years, a young girl began to have visions, which set nearly everybody on edge. They brushed it aside though, because she was a young girl after all."

"However," Mr. Shiguro cut in once again, earning a hard glare from his companion. "A few years later, her newfound powers began to grow out of control. A young boy died because he happened to be nearby when one of her uncontrollable 'energy bursts' suddenly hit. The villagers proclaimed her a demon, and cast her out of the village."

Kagome nodded slowly, her eyes glazing over slightly as she remembered the vision she had while they were in the past. So that's who it was, she thought to herself. That poor young girl, Kagome frowned in sympathy, she must had been so terrified. To be cast out of her village, and have her family and neighbors run her out into the wilderness.....

Just like Inuyasha, she realized.

Swallowing, Kagome blinked back tears that were threatening to shed on behalf of both the young girl and the hanyou beside her. "Please continue," she asked Taka, keeping her head bowed to hide her glistening eyes.

"The young girl lived on her own for a while," Taka explained. "And this is where the situation becomes fuzzy for us," he frowned, apparently frustrated over the lack of solid evidence. "We can't figure out if she was taken over by the demon, or if she invited him in, but either way they fused together as one."

"And that's where the girl's life really ends, and the demon's begins," Mr. Shiguro explained. "The young girl is just a body for him that he keeps alive. In doing this, he can easily hide his identity."

"That's why I couldn't smell him," Inuyasha jerked his head back in sudden revelation. "The girl's was covering his own. And her scent wasn't dead, just old."

"Correct," Taka nodded. "And you couldn't smell her unique human scent because the demon covered it. In a sense, both of their scents probably nullified the other, just like it did for their power," he shrugged lightly. "It can't be detected."

"So all I could smell was the old scent and the lighter scent of whoever's form he was taking," Inuyasha nodded, not even bothering to see if anyone agreed with his statement. He knew he was right.

"But how does she....er....he, know about the well?" Kagome asked, confused.

"It's been following you for a while now," Taka explained, expecting the question. "Somehow, a few months back, the demon was able to escape its prison."

"Room," Mr. Shiguro muttered as he lifted his cup to his lips.

"Prison," Taka grit his teeth and repeated. "We were hot on its trail for a while, but because it had become to adept at changing it's form, we eventually lost it in the throngs." He frowned, clearly upset over the failure.

"And this explains the well, how?" Inuyasha asked, eyebrow raised in a condescending manner.

Taka's eyebrow twitched and he turned to Kagome before finishing his answer, effectively pissing the hanyou off. "As the demon moved through the ages, he couldn't get a hold of the talisman, yes?" He waited for her nod before continuing. "Well, my guess is that he had heard of the village that housed the miko who protected the Shikon Jewel. Our only theory is that he went to your shrine in attempts to steal the jewel, as a replacement for the talisman."

"Either way, we were alerted of its movement and caught up to it here at the shrine a couple days later," Mr. Shiguro explained as best he could. "The way we understood the eyewitness account, he watched as you jumped into the well and disappeared through time."

"When?" Kagome blinked and leaned forward. How could she have missed the fact that she was being watched? She was always careful to shut the well house door before jumping through to the past.

Taka shook his head. "It was a while ago, and you appeared to be in a hurry, according to our operative" he reached forward for his cup of tea, taking a soothing sip of the warm drink Ms. Higurashi had prepared. "We ourselves," he gestured to Mr. Shiguro and himself, "did not watch you physically jump through the well, but I did watch as you came back out of the well house one night. The hanyou followed you about an hour later."

"It was you!" Kagome shrieked and pointed a finger accusingly at Taka. "You were the one who was watching my house that rainy night!"

Inuyasha snapped his head towards Taka and growled threateningly. "Bastard," he snarled, fuming over the fact that Taka had scared the wits out of his mate.

"Guilty," Taka shrugged, unabashed. "I meant you no harm, I was only trying to see why the demon had taken such an interest in this little shrine." He sighed. "Now we know. He was planning on using the well to get a second chance at the talisman."

"Were you also the one who stuck the note in my science book?" Kagome demanded, crossing her arms and shivering at the reminder of the creepy notes she was given.

"No," Taka shook his head. "We found out later that he was stalking you, but we couldn't say anything because it was too late. By the time I and Mr. Shiguro arrived to explain the situation to you, all three of you were already through the well."

"It explains why your clothes were missing," Ms. Higurashi stepped into the conversation. "The demon needed them for the well to let him through."

Kagome slowly nodded her head. "I guess so...."

"But now the demon is once again in our captivity," Mr. Shiguro sighed and cracked his neck. "We're going to set about sealing him up, hopefully for the rest of his life."

"What about the girl?" Kagome whipped her head up and frowned at the two men. "Are you going to seal her up as well?"

Mr. Shiguro sighed. "I really don't know. I don't think we can separate her from the demon."

"Keh!" Inuyasha spat and crossed hid arms, raising his nose in the air. "It's her own damn fault for letting the demon in!"

Kagome growled under her breath and elbowed him in the ribs, hard. "You don't know that!" She exclaimed. "Maybe she was forced by the demon! And besides," she added. "I'm sure she regrets her decision, she was probably tricked." Lowering her eyes to the table, she swallowed. "Everybody deserves a second chance, you know."

Inuyasha sat quietly for a moment, slowly digesting her words and reading the meaning she held behind them. He had been given a second chance, he realized as his ears drooped slightly in accordance with her mood. His revival at Kagome's hands was a second chance for him to start over and live again. She had saved his soul, he knew, by pulling out that arrow and letting him live again. For Kagome, the idea of someone _not_ getting a second chance was unthinkable.

Torn, Inuyasha couldn't decide whether to praise or scorn the Kami for his mate's sympathetic nature.

Taka cleared his throat, yanking both Kagome and Inuyasha effectively from their musings, and the two of them jumped. Kagome blushed wildly and Inuyasha growled threateningly, cracking his knuckles.

"Uhm," Kagome cleared her throat. "About the talisman?"

"Yes?" Taka turned his gaze toward her.

"There's a spirit trapped inside...." Kagome stated out, unsure of how to word her question.

"Yes," Taka nodded. "I know. The woman inside is nothing but a spirit, and can be set free when the talisman is destroyed."

"But," Kagome struggled to find the words. "How did she get to....be in there?"

Taka sighed, ready to launch into another long-winded explanation. "Long ago, the talisman was created by a powerful demon. The purpose of this talisman was not to control villages, as it was widely believed back in feudal times. Instead, the demon created it out of his own cursed blood for his beloved, a human woman."

"A hime," Kagome corrected almost instantly, remembering the quality of the woman's clothes.

"Yes," Mr. Shiguro nodded in agreement. "The demon was madly in love with the hime, though she would not look his way, simply because of the fact that he was a demon. She told him that the only way that she would ever love him was if he brought her to a majestic palace where every servant was at her beck and call. Furious with her petty demand, he granted her request and sealed her up within the talisman."

"How did that grant her wish?" Ms. Higurashi frowned, confused.

"It didn't really," Taka replied, shrugging his shoulders lightly. "But it's been rumored that within the talisman, she lacks for nothing. Everything is within her grasp in there. And so, because she was given what her heart desired, she grants the bearer of the talisman anything he or she desires."

"That's wrong," Kagome whispered, remembering the haunted look on the old woman's face. "She's trapped in there with nothing but her own company to keep."

Mr. Shiguro shrugged. "We'll never know, will we?"

"Don't feel guilty about destroying the talisman," Taka's eyes bore into Kagome's. "She's long since dead, and would probably welcome the freedom."

Kagome swallowed, then nodded reluctantly.

"In any case...." Taka shut his 'laptop' and stood. "Our work is done here, and we really must get back to headquarters." He nodded to Ms. Higurashi. "Thank you for the tea."

"We'll keep you posted if anything new comes up," Mr. Shiguro nodded to the older woman and smiled kindly.

"Of course," Ms. Higurashi nodded, standing as well. "Please, let me show you to the door," she smiled and ushered both men out of the room, leaving Inuyasha and Kagome in complete silence.

Kagome swallowed as the weight of the silence pounded on her already aching head, making her shift nervously on the fluffy cushion. "So...." She giggled nervously, grasping at one thought to another, trying to find something to say after that long explanation.

"Shut up," Inuyasha growled and wrapped a possessive arm around her shoulders. "Just.....shut up," he sighed and leaned his head on top of hers.

"Long day," Kagome sighed in response.

"Hn," Inuyasha grunted in agreement.

"About the bow that I held earlier...."

"Yeah?" Inuyasha replied, burying his nose within her hair and inhaling her sweet, intoxicating fragrance. The scent made his head spin in slight euphoria, and a familiar heat settled low in his belly, aching to claim her body as his.

_Mate._

'Yeah, yeah,' Inuyasha smirked. 'Mate.'

_My mate, _the youkai growled possessively.

'_My_ mate,' Inuyasha growled and pulled her closer to him, threading his fingers through her soft hair and tangling them within her black locks.

"Mama was explaining to me while you were gone," Kagome yawned, snuggling deeper into Inuyasha's neck, wanting nothing more than for the day to be over. "The bow....it's mine."

"What? You picked up yourself a practice bow for this time, as well?" Inuyasha snorted and pulled her body closer, settling her slight form in his lap.

"No," Kagome shook her head, closing her eyes. "It's mine, from the feudal era."

"It survived all this time?" Inuyasha raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"It was found in the well," Kagome yawned and tucked herself more closely into his warm body. "A long time ago," she finished slowly.

Inuyasha snorted. "So it really doesn't tell us anything," he retorted back to her. "Just the fact that your bow will survive against our fight with Naraku."

Kagome chuckled. "That's nice to know," she yawned again, louder this time and catching Inuyasha's attention.

He nuzzled closer to her, burying his nose within her silky hair once again to bury his senses in her wonderful scent. "You're tired," he stated the obvious.

"No, m'not," Kagome grumbled a protest as her eyes fell shut.

Inuyasha smirked. "Yes you are."

"No....."

Snorting, he stood carefully, careful not to jar the girl in his arms. "We're going back," he told her. "No protesting."

"I don't protest," she protested in a mumbled voice, feeling the urge to argue with him just for the hell of it, just because she was exhausted and he wasn't. It wasn't fair, she thought and frowned.

"Shut up and sleep," he rolled his eyes and ordered. "I'll tell your mother we're leaving."

"Nghnn," Kagome could barely stifle another yawn as it crept up on her.

"See? You're too tired to even argue with me," Inuyasha chuckled and pointed out, swiftly moving from the dining room to the hallway, lifting his nose to sniff out Ms. Higurashi's scent.

"I'm never too tired to argue with you," Kagome muttered darkly and her eyebrow lowered dangerously.

"Go to sleep, bitch," he told her again in a firm voice. "We'll argue when you wake up."

"I'm looking forward to it already," Kagome sighed and snuggled closer to his warm chest.

* * *

Wow...look at that. An update! Horray! Less than a week, too! I've never gone a full week without updating...how great is that? Man you guys are spoiled, eh? LOL. I'm still waiting for my favorite fics to be updated....(sigh).

Yeah, so....if this chapter sucked, I'm sorry. It was a lot of information to cram into 13 pages...(wince). I hope it all made sense to you.

Next chapter: Back to Sengoku Jidai to destroy the talisman and....what's this? Inuyasha and Kagome? What's going on there?

REVIEW PLEASE!


	32. Chapter thirty two

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha….though he does let me play with his chew toy once in a while. (happily gnaws on a familiar-looking weapon that looks like it belongs to a certain taijya….)

A/N: I am so sorry for not updating in a while. For those of you who don't know, my great uncle passed away. There was a lot of family stuff going on, not to mention school work….so I hadn't the time to work on my fic, and I apologize for that.

This chapter right here is about Miroku/Sango. I'm working on the rest of the fic….there should be one more chapter after this….but for now, so I don't get my head taken off, I've posted the first half of the chapter I'm working on. So don't give me strife about it not being about Kagome/Inuyasha, because I'm working on it. And hey….let's give our second favorite pair some closure, hm?

I've also created a new mailing list! Sign up here if you'd like notes via e-mail to inform you if I've updated or added a new fic: h t t p: firetiger . notify list . c o m

(Take out all the spaces!)

"Don't even think about it," Sango growled and moved just out of arm's reach from the monk, never breaking her steady stride. In her arms, an exhausted Kirara gave a pitiful 'mew'; an indication of slight pain that brought Sango's anger back to the surface of her mind. The villagers had driven them out of the village, and the poor neko was hit on her hind leg with a rather large piece of scrap wood as they were escaping.

Sango sighed in sympathy for Kirara and gently pat her on the head in what she hoped was a comforting and reassuring manner, wanting to make her feel as safe and content as possible.

Why'd he have to do it? Why? She groaned and tilted her head back, glaring at the soft white clouds as if they were the ones she was expecting an answer from. Cursing their inability to explain the inner workings of the monk's mind, she whipped her head back to its former position, glaring instead at the bumpy dirt path in front of them.

Everything had been perfect, too, she added silently with a wail. They entered the village very much the same way they had the first time, and with Miroku's string of money surprisingly lighter, they made their way through the streets, careful to hide Kirara's split tail.

With their eyes and ears open for any information, they strode confidently through the streets, occasionally stopping once in a while to catch a tidbit of information here or there. It was surprising how little the villagers talked about the talisman, or the fact that it was now gone.

After a good portion of the day had passed, Sango was growing weary of hearing about tomorrow night's supposed storm. Glancing up at the sky, she did however, make a mental note to remind Kaede about bringing in the hanging herbs that had been hung outside to dry.

It took another good while, but Sango had finally stumbled upon a useful conversation. Leaning casually against a nearby wall, she strained forward to hear the information that was being passed, and not having a very good time of it. The noises from the street vendors were threatening to drown out the man's words, and she felt the urge to slap the wailing child who felt the need to stand directly next to her.

Huffing to herself, she had not-to-gently pushed the child away, explaining that the child could find his mama more efficiently if he actually _looked. _Turning back to the conversation, she inched forward, not wanting to appear as if she were intruding, but casually sweeping her gaze across the street as if pausing to look for something. The two men paid her no heed and went on with their discussion, giving Sango the perfect chance to listen in and get some information about the talisman.

That is, until her gaze suddenly swept to the left and noticed that the monk who was usually attached to her hip, quite literally, was nowhere to be found. Eyebrows raised, Sango did a complete circle in her spot, looking around for a glimpse of purple, indicating the monk's robes. Finding nothing, she nearly sent herself into a panic.

Not for him, of course, but the young girl of whom he was probably trying to persuade into having his child.

She was brought back to present time by the scuffle of her sandal on a rock, and she turned to glared at the oblivious monk. He just _had _to find the lord's one and only daughter to try and seduce. And in front of a whole crowd, yet!

Hungry and more than tired of walking, Sango sighed out loud, wishing longingly for a nice soft futon and a warm fire. The setting sun beat down heavily on her back, reminding her that there would only be a few more hours until nighttime. A particularly annoying and loud bug started buzzing from the reeds on the side of the road and she turned her head to glare at the bush, feeling her temples pound in time to the buzzing noise.

"We should probably find somewhere to set up camp," Miroku pointed out casually in a soft voice.

"Well, if Kirara wasn't injured, we'd be back in the village by now," she pointed out acidly, stiffening her shoulders in slightly agitation.

"Sango," Miroku gave a long, drawn out sigh. "I apologized already, what more do you want?"

"I want you to start using that brain of yours," Sango retorted. "If you had, we wouldn't be in this mess." She sighed as a sudden thought occurred to her. "Kami, now what do we do? Inuyasha's going to be furious if he finds out that we went all that way and didn't get a speck of information."

Miroku slowed his pace a bit, lifting his gaze to the blood red sky above. "I'll simply tell him it was my fault and that we'll try again the next time we're on the road and passing by that particular village."

"Oh yes," Sango rolled her eyes. "And he's just going to smile and nod his head?"

"Well," Miroku chuckled, putting a hand up behind his head. "I suspect I will have to endure the pain from a couple of smacks, but he'll eventually calm down."

Sango sighed, suddenly weary once again. Her thoughts drifted back to the incident and she swallowed as she felt a small pain jab itself into her heart. The girl had been pretty, she reluctantly admitted to herself. No wonder the monk wanted her to bear his child. Although he propositioned many women, he did seem to be particularly choosy in his pickings, only approaching the lovely young ladies.

And she was not one of those ladies, Sango thought sadly and felt her shoulders droop. Why was he so woman crazy and picky? Couldn't he just settle for an average girl?

Noting the sad expression that had crossed over Sango's face, Miroku inwardly winced. "Sango," He closed his eyes and gave a long-drawn out sigh.

"What?" She snapped and swung her head around, narrowing her eyes and daring his to try and make this out to be _her _fault.

He paused, as if hesitant. "Let me make it up to you," he opened his eyes and raised his gaze to meet hers.

"Eh?" Sango blinked and came to a full stop, turning her body slowly to face his. "Why?" She asked suspiciously, her eyebrows narrowing dangerously. He was up to something, she knew. He was _always _up to something.

Miroku gave a short chuckle and help up both of his hands in front of him. "I mean nothing sexual by it Sango, I assure you," he gave Sango his best convincing smile, hoping to win her over on charms alone.

"That just makes me even more suspicious," She replied darkly, immune to his winning smile.

"Sango….," Miroku sighed.

"Don't do that."

"Do what?" He blinked suddenly, confused.

"Say my name in that….tone," she waved a hand in the air, more to try and wave away the conversation than to emphasize her point.

Miroku's smile grew slow and easily, a mischievous glint shining in his eye. "Sango," he breathed again, his eyes rapidly softening as he gazed at her.

"M-Miroku?" Sango asked just as softly, her heart nearly bursting with an unnamable emotion the longer his gaze softened onto hers, staring at her as if she were his world.

Why? Why was he staring at her like that? She mentally demanded to know the answer. How can he gaze at her with such longing one moment, and then go chasing after a pretty skirt the next? It wasn't fair, she mentally groaned. Why'd she have to fall in love with such a womanizer?

'Wait a second,' She frowned. 'Love? No, I don't love him. I can't!' She nodded in agreement with her mental voice.

'Liar.'

Oh dear, there was Kagome's voice again, Sango sighed. She really was losing it. Though she was happy to know that Kagome was in it with her, she thought to herself in a dazed manner.

"Sango?" Miroku's voice called out, penetrating the haze of her own thoughts. She blinked and looked up to seek out the distant voice, her eyes darting back and forth, seeking out his purple robes. She found him carefully arranging stones around a rather large pile of sticks, just inside the tree line. Blinking, she wondered belatedly exactly how long she had been thinking to herself for Miroku to have already acquired a campsite tucked safely in the cover of the woods.

"What are you doing?" She asked, walking into the woods and over to him.

"Setting up camp," he replied simply and set about starting the fire.

"We wouldn't have to camp out here if Kirara was able to fly us home," she glared at him and slid into a seating position across the fire from him.

Miroku sighed. "I realize that Sango, and I do believe I've already apologized."

"You did?" She quirked an eyebrow in disbelief.

He grit his teeth together and slid his eyes shut, slowly getting rather annoyed. "I did," he replied in an even tone once his nerves had calmed down. "Now will you please forgive me so that the rest of our evening mar be one in peace?"

Sango huffed at his tone, still not ready to let go of her anger so easily. "What about food?"

"I'll see about that," he assured her once the fire was on its way, cackling happily among the various twigs he had found. "I'm sure there's a stream nearby. Perhaps we'll have some fish for our evening meal," he smiled at her, trying to lift her spirits with the tantalizing thought of food.

"I suppose," She grumbled to herself, huddling her arms around her body and inching closer to the fire, away from the clutches of the nipping cold air. "Fish does sound good," she agreed slowly, her eyes darting back and forth between the Kirara, who was situated at her side, and Miroku.

"I'll be sure to bring extra fish for Kirara," Miroku nodded almost to himself before placing his hands on his knees and starting to stand.

"Wait!" Sango cried out before she could stop herself.

He blinked, caught midway between standing and sitting. "Yes?" He asked her.

"Erm," She swallowed, hesitant and unsure of her next words. She was rather hungry, but just for now….she didn't want to be alone. "Food….can wait until later, right? Why not stay a bit and get warm before you go," she pointed out, trying to be as casual as possible.

Sure she was still annoyed with him, but Sango could freely and openly admit to herself that she couldn't stay mad at the monk for too long. Cursing her own weakness, not to mention the 180 degree turn around her behavior and attitude had undergone in the past few minutes, she slumped her shoulders over and leaned closer to the fire, accepting the warmth and drowsily letting her anger fade away, leaving calm and a sense of numbness settle over her being.

"I suppose I should," Miroku admitted softly, settling down into a seated position next to her. Tucking his hands into his sleeves for warmth, he glanced at her content expression and allowed himself a small smile.

"Don't do that," Sango's drowsy voice drifted up to his range of hearing, her eyes still closed.

"Don't do what?" He blinked.

"Don't smile at me like that," she yawned slightly, not bothering to cover her mouth.

He watched, amused, before shifting closer to her. "How do you know I'm smiling?" He asked. "Your eyes are closed," he pointed out.

"I can tell," she replied in a drowsy fashion. "I can feel it when you're looking at me."

"Oh?" His eyebrow quirked, "How so?"

She gave a slight shrug. "My senses get all tingly," the words poured out of her mouth, and she cursed her inability to censor her words while in a half-sleep state.

"Mmm," Miroku smiled and scooted closer to her body, feeling the lack of heat coming from her body and resisting the urge to reach over and share his warmth so that she wouldn't get sick.

"Houshi-sama?"

"Hmm?"

"You're going to grope me now, aren't you?"

He laughed. "If I did, would you object?"

"I'd hit you," she replied flatly.

"No, Sango," Miroku shook his head before allowing his arm to drape casually around her shoulders. "Not tonight."

"Headache?" She chuckled to herself.

"Something like that," he stared down at her sleepy form and felt his heart swell with such emotion that he couldn't help but pull her closer so that her head was cushioned on his shoulder.

Kami but she was beautiful. He stared at her full lips before mentally shaking himself and turning away with regret.

"M'roku?" She called out softly.

"Yes Sango?" He answered, gazing into the forest, the fire…. anywhere but directly at her.

"Your hand is rubbing my butt."

"Ahh," Miroku chuckled sheepishly, removing his wandering hand and placing it behind his head. "I guess it really does have a mind of its own, ne?"

Sango glared at him for a moment. "Two fish," she demanded after a pause.

"Two fish," Miroku allowed with a nod, throwing her arms around her shoulder and rubbing some warmth back into her arm. "Take a rest Sango, we can eat later."

"Already ahead of you, houshi-sama," Sango yawned and closed her eyes once more.

Alright, like I've said before….the rest of the fic is coming….I'm working on it now. You'll get your last chapter soon, I promise. Sorry if this chapter sucks! (sheepish smile)


	33. Chapter thirty three

Disclaimer: Inuyasha isn't mine….he will be returned, though I'm not so sure about his sanity…

A/N: Here it is, guys…the last. chapter. I'm sorry it took to long to put up, but here it is. Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you enjoy the ending!

This chapter is extreemely short due to the face that doen't accept lemons, so, if you want to read the whole thing, and you're old enough to read lemons, go to my bio page and the link will be posted. Thanks!

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Inuyasha breathed a sigh of relief once his feet landed on the other side of the well, back into the feudal times. One glance at the young miko in his arms confirmed that she had slept through the entire time shift. He shook his head and allowed himself a snort. She must have been exhausted.

Bending slightly at his knees, he wrapped his arms tighter around Kagome and leapt up out of the well, landing lightly on the rim. He lifted his head and sniffled delicately at the air, seeking out any possible danger. Satisfied when he found none, Inuyasha then turned towards the village in the distance and found none of the tell-tale smoke trails that signified the villagers were awake.

He snorted once again. Kaede-baba must have fallen straight asleep after their departure, not knowing what else she could do about the talisman. He'd return to the village in the morning and destroy it, he promised himself. But for now….he bent at the knees and leapt off the well, speeding into the trees. There was a little matter he had to settle with Kagome…..after she awoke, that is.

The last thing he wanted was for her to fall asleep in the middle of his lesson.

He bounded off throughout the forest, taking a secret thrill each time he soared through the air in between leaps. It had been a long time since he could run freely like this. That damn youkai had caused so much trouble for them. He growled and cursed Taka for not allowing him kill the bastard once they had figured out if they could separate the youkai from the girl underneath.

Keh, he thought to himself. He'd check in every one in a while and see if the twerp was doing his job and trying to seal the damn youkai away. If not, he growled happily and cracked his knuckles, he'd just take care of it for them and force the youkai to drop his hold on the girl.

Then he'd fucking kill the bastard for daring to hurt his mate.

A soft sigh caught his attention and he glanced down at Kagome, watching her curl tighter against him and lean her cheek into his chest. An indescribable emotion swamped his entire being with a slight shiver and he shook his head lightly, already used to the familiar feeling. Wimpy humans would probably call it love, but he'd kill anyone who'd dare try and point it out.

No, Kagome was his. His mate. That was it.

So what if that particular feeling swept over him occasionally whenever he glanced at her face? He didn't have to acknowledge it by giving it a name. And besides, he thought to himself, it felt….nice. That was all.

Nope, not love. Just a nice feeling.

Yep.

'Moron,' his human side snorted.

His youkai side snarled inside his head.

"Both of you shut up," Inuyasha growled out loud as he landed in a clearing, surrounded by a dense tree line. Lifting his head, he sniffed at the air, searching for danger once more. Finding none, he gently placed Kagome down into a seating position as he knelt next to her, wrestling with his haori to get it off. It proved to be difficult, however, as he only had one free hand to get it off, while the other was gently supporting Kagome's back.

"Damn it," he grunted as the haori finally slid free. "Fucking pain in the ass…." He muttered out loud and spread the haori on the forest floor before gently lowering Kagome on top of it.

Once settled, he rocked back on his heels and brushed a stray clump of hair away from her face. Sighing, he allowed tense muscles to relax slightly, relieved that they were home again, in this time.

A small snap of a twig caught his attention and he whipped his head around to face the noise, his body crouching defensively in front of his mate. A quick scuttle came from a bush not too far away, and Inuyasha watched warily as a small rabbit hopped quickly away.

Snorting to himself, he relaxed somewhat and turned around to face the sleeping Kagome. Falling a little heavier on his bottom than he would have liked, Inuyasha grunted lightly as he arranged his legs into a comfortable seating position.

A slight sigh caught his attention, and his ears perked at the noise. He leaned over the girl and watched with amused eyes as Kagome yawned and sleepily tried to rub at her face, waking up from her short nap.

"Oi," he called out softly to her, "You're supposed to be sleeping."

"And you're _not_ supposed tobe hovering over me," Kagome replied grumpily and turned over on her side, stretching lightly.

"I was making sure you were alright!" He protested lightly, crossing his arms into his haori sleeves.

"M'fine," she insisted, lifting her head and plopping it down on his leg. Snuggling into her newfound pillow, she sighed again and closed her eyes. "You haven't gotten any sleep either, remember?" Kagome barely stifled a yawn.

"So?" He scoffed, wincing as she snuggled a bit _too _hard into his thigh. "I'm a hanyou, remember?"

"Mmhm," She nodded noncommittally, then blinked her eyes open with a frown as a sudden thought occurred to her. "Where _are _we?" She demanded, lifting her head slightly and taking a look around.

"In a forest," Inuyasha shrugged.

"Oh, well, thanks for clearing that up," Kagome replied sarcastically and narrowed her eyes at the hanyou before lifting herself up into an upright sitting position.

"Whatever," he shrugged again and darted his eyes elsewhere.

"What's going on?" Kagome narrowed her eyes and asked him, not feeling particularly comforted by his averting eyes.

"Nothing," He replied gruffly, crossing his arms tighter against his chest. He had this all planned out in his mind a few minutes ago, but now….he lowered his eyes to the ground. Sure they had been intimate before, when they were back in her room, but…..what if she'd changed her mind? What if he did start to initiate their mating and she pulled away from him? A sharp jab in the vicinity of his heart caused him to wince. He didn't think he could take that.

"What's wrong?" Kagome was immediately by his side, her hand gently gripping his shoulder. A slight clog appeared in his throat and he tried to push it down.

"Nothing," he heard himself say and was horrified to hear the anguished emotion behind it. No, he shouted to himself mentally, I'm _not _going to do it, I'm _not!_

His body, however, had a nasty habit of not listening to his mind. Leaning forward, his arms came around her small frame and pulled her closer to him as he buried his face in the crook of her neck with a soft whine.

Kagome blinked, confused for a moment. "Inu," Anther soft whine cut her off. Feeling her heart soften, Kagome leaned her head against his and drew her arms up around his neck. Nuzzling the top of his head, she sighed contentedly and wished that they could stay here for a while. After all, it was rarely that Inuyasha bothered to show such affection and vulnerability….hell, she had only seen him like this twice since the whole mess started.

Feeling his hot tongue sweep across the skin on her neck, she emitted a surprised yelp at the sudden action and tried to lean her head back. His arms held fast, and she was forced to stay where she was as he began lapping softly at her skin, right where her mark was. Shivering involuntarily, Kagome cleared her throat.

"Inuyasha?" She whispered, knowing he could hear her with his sensitive hearing. His ear perked and moved to face her direction, showing her that he was listening. "Can we….stay like this for a bit?" She felt her face heat as the words tumbled out of her mouth.

He dragged his mouth away from her skin long enough to answer her. "Aa," he replied, his voice gruff. "Kagome," he sighed and lifted his head, quickly finding her lips and descending upon them, lapping gently.

"Inu," Kagome breathed and chuckled a bit as she began to realize that using her voice anytime soon was pointless. Smiling as he lovingly lapped at her mouth, she leaned in closer to kiss him fully, playfully teasing him with her tongue.

Growling, Inuyasha nipped at her tongue before soothing it over with his own. Leaning back, he stared into her eyes and softly reached up to move a clump of bangs away from her forehead.

Neither of them knew what to say, but that was all right. Words were not needed between them now. Kisses and nuzzles were exchanged over the next couple hours- and well into dawn. They returned to the village in the morning, where Inuyasha had personally destroyed the talisman. Kagome wasn't one hundred percent certain, but she could have swore that she heard a sigh of relief coming from the talisman as the spirit was released into the afterlife.

Sango and Miroku returned that same day, not noticing the difference between their two friends. It would come out eventually, both Inuyasha and Kagome knew….but for now, it was best to not mention it, and to continue their journey towards finding all of the jewel shards and destroying Naraku, now that this chapter had been put to an end.

Maybe….perhaps after the defeat of the evil hanyou, would Inuyasha and Kagome allow themselves to announce their mated status to all of their friends. But for now they kept their warmth and affection to themselves, stealing away in the bushes for moments at a time, or volunteering to look for firewood for hours on end.

Eventually, Sango and Miroku would both start to wonder why Shippo was receiving so many treats from Kagome…and why the hanyou had stopped hitting him so much.

To his credit, Shippo would just smile knowingly, and come to love the term 'blackmail'.

The End.

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THANK YOU SO MUCH for staying with me this whole trip, you guys. I can now finally say that "Dangerous Admirer" is _finally _finished. 6 months and 33 chapters later, the epic is at an end, and I want to thank all of my reviewers from the bottom of my heart. You've made this fic very much enjoyable, and I loved every stop of the way with it.

Please, review and let me know if I should do another long fic like this. If I get enough feedback from the end of this fic, I just might start a new one. You guys are the greatest, and now please let me end by saying…

"Have a cookie?" (distributes all of her cookies)


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